Politics!

 

Politics. For most people it is a curse word, but for me, it is a passion. I was a political science major in college, I interned twice for my state's legislature, and I worked, in different capacities, for the 2000 and 2004 presidential campaigns. I have gotten to meet, respect, and love several people who were (or are) in office. I love talking politics, watching politics, and reading about politics. Of course there are those politicians who upset me or with whom I have lost all respect. There are those who hold an elected office who I did not vote for, but that is the beauty of the process! We get a voice and if we don't like someone we can cast our vote for another. Truly, beautiful.

A funny political text!

Throughout all my studies and (limited) experience, I have come to love campaigns best of all. Election season is simply mesmerizing to me. I love the intensity, the polls, the debates, the speeches, the rallies, and the yard signs. I love it all. During this presidential election, I have been glued to the TV at night watching the conventions, debates, and commentaries. I receive countless texts from friends and family: some which make me laugh (such as the one where my friend wrote during the VP debate: "Paul Ryan = Jason Dugger") and others which make me roll my eyes. I get in conversations with others about our country. I can't stop talking about it! It has rebirthed the passionate political monster that has been laying dormant during the past few years of being a stay at home mom.

Several weeks ago, when the conventions were on TV, I felt the Lord caution my heart not to get too carried away. To stay grounded and to keep content with where He has me. You see, my husband and I have prayed about our careers and right now we both feel that I am to be primarily a stay at home mother. I love and believe I am where God wants me, and yet, in the heat of election time, I can't help but want to be out in the field. I want to be working on the campaign trail. I wish I was out doing what needed to be done, moving up the chain of command, and being an insider. These things can hurt my heart and spirit when it comes to marriage and family.

If I allow myself to think about these thoughts, these "what ifs," then I am doing damage in my home. By the grace of God, I have never compared my husband to any other man. Never whispered, "Why can't Jason be more like John Doe." Why not? Because I have been on my guard about that temptation and it has never been an option for me. However, thinking about what life would be like if I was out on the campaign trail is just as dangerous. It is an invitation to allow Satan to sow seeds of discontentment that previously were not there.

I can step back and I can know that I wouldn't want to employed anywhere else. I can step back and know that I am honoring my husband's choices by staying home. I can step back and know that I'm making a bigger impact here, being a wife and mom, than I would be out in the political arena. But that hasn't stopped me from daydreaming... and that is where I am in the wrong.  Jason and I have prayed about our life and feel called to where we are and so leaving what I am doing to go chase a passion would not be the best wifely decision. And yet, that is exactly what I'm doing in my mind. I need to be fully in the moment here with my husband and my children instead of mentally thinking about how I can get involved in the campaign and which debate I can score a ticket to.

How does this relate to wives everywhere?

I bet we all have an area where we struggle in being content, submitting to our husbands, and controlling our thoughts. Perhaps yours in not politics (I am well aware I am weirdly passionate about this, ha), but it might be a different career ambition, ministry opportunity, or hobby. Is there an area of your thought life that you have allowed Satan to enter into? Perhaps in regards to lust, another man, or simply a different life or lifestyle? Scripture commands us to take every thought captive (2 Corinthians 10:5) and despite the warning the Lord laid on my heart several weeks ago... I have not done a good job with that and my family has paid the price. I am determined to change before this election season is over! I will practice self control and not allow myself to daydream about being in the political arena. Instead, I will focus on the blessing of being right where I am and savoring every minute of being married to a man who has little interest in politics. I will keep at the forefront of my mind a note my husband wrote to me on my 30th birthday. He said, "You once told me that you wanted to be a famous Hollywood actress by the time you were 30 and if I remember correctly, you also wanted to be a Vice Presidential nominee shortly thereafter... you've sacrificed some of your greatest dreams in order to be the perfect wife and mother for our family..."

I will gladly continue to sacrifice my greatest dreams in order to be the wife and mother I need to be for my family. They are worth the sacrifice. They are worth the commitment to control my thoughts. After the Lord, they are my greatest passion and I will count each moment being a wife and mother a blessing and an honor.