Posted originally on the conservative tree house April 18, 2021 | Sundance | 280 Comments

Hope springs eternal.   President Trump had dinner last night with MAGA Governor Ron DeSantis….

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CTH pointed out something a few weeks ago that bears repeating.  There is a video which some have watched below; however, I would challenge readers and supporters of the America First agenda to re-watch the video with the sound “off”.

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Keep the sound off and…. notice the mannerisms.  Look familiar?

Faith…

All around us is this great sense of foreboding ugh, and it’s not just connected to an election, or politics; it’s everything.  We notice it appearing on these very pages, in our conversation… in the expressions of our anxiety.  Many things seem weird; many things seem not comfortable; many things seem less joyful and require an intensity of thought and focus just to carry-on what used to be ordinary events.

In our daily lives we encounter ordinary disconnects now.  In addition to the increased tribalism, masked faces are disconnecting our sense of interaction, our human connection. Unfortunately, and as a natural outcome of these challenges, we are accepting disconnect and creating a void inside ourselves.

At the same time COVID is physically disconnecting people from their family.  Many parents and grandparents will not see their adult children.  Many friends have disconnected.

Amid all of this flux and ugh, even simple tasks somehow feel, sense, seem less joyful.  Perhaps financial worry exists amid your home, your family or friends. Perhaps there is something destabilizing, we cannot quite describe it, yet we feel it.

Perhaps tears flow at times and we struggle to understand what this unusual anxiety is all about.  Perhaps our own tempers are short, less willing to allow trespasses to be forgiven.  Then, amid our human condition, we begin to struggle with the feeling of shame or guilt for being weak and allowing our humanity to pour out of our human-selves.  Then, at the worst possible time our faith organizations are slow to understand the importance of fellowship and community amid an upheaval that takes our center from under our feet.

Regional leadership might even make this anxiety worse.  As our grip on our familiar surroundings becomes more tenuous, we are faced with dictates and mandates that only exacerbate the issues.  The media drumbeat an incessant noise that destabilizes us and yet we cannot quite put our finger on why the impact is worse now…. it is all ugh.

It is all just, ugh.

If you find the assembly of these words familiar to your current sense, first understand YOU ARE NOT ALONE.  Second, understand there is nothing wrong with you.  This blanket of anxiety is laying across our entire nation, and we are all sensing a various level of this ‘ugh’ with some familiarity.  However, that said, it is important to know this is transitional.  We will not be in this place long.  This too shall pass.

How do we shake these destabilizing feelings and emotions?

How do we reconnect to the core-spirit we carry in our lives?

These are the questions we should use to leverage ourselves back to a center of peace and hope.   These are the questions that empower us to recharge of our sense of purpose and life within the lives of others, including our community, family and friends.

♦ The first way we shake this ‘ugh’, is to give to others without reservation.  Giving with purpose is the true spirit of human contact.  The giving is not related to money or wealth; the giving is related to our human purpose.  Perhaps we give a smile.  Perhaps we give a kind word.  Perhaps we give a compliment, or perhaps we just give time to another.  You control your impact.  You can choose to be the light that pushes back against the foreboding.

You could give a gift to another or perhaps send an email; or better yet write a letter to a dear friend or family member.  Reach out and tell them they matter and express why their place in this life of yours is important.  Remind them of your specific thankfulness, and connect to the purpose of why we endeavor in this thing we call life.  The important thing is to give, and to do it without any other intent or purpose than to fill your own heart.

♦ Within the giving, remind yourself what this journey is all about and look around to recognize how fortunate we are to have this life.  Choose to accept and cherish the ultimate gift from a loving God who wants joy and hope to permeate our human sense.

Hope is the one necessary human element beyond all other facets of life.  Give the gift of hope and light to those you love by first reminding yourself of the gift that a loving God has given us all.  It is too easy in our human sense to forget the biggest gift we have been granted, the gift of life.  The ability to live and choose how we engage in the lives of others.  We still have that… we will always have that.

No politics or false sense of security can overwhelm the message of HOPE that a loving God has provided. No effort of man or human disposition can surmount the greatest love of all. “No power of hell, nor scheme of man” can come close to the purpose of God’s intent and love for you as a unique person qualified to receive that love.

Wrap yourself in the blanket of that unconditional love.

Let the tears flow if needed and with them release the foreboding.  Engage in the next moment with a loving purpose filled with the HOPE that He provides.  Fall forward to the centered purpose of your life, a very special life, and reflect on the gift we are too quick to diminish.

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.” Then He said to me, “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost.”

‭‭Revelation‬ ‭21:1-6

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A Prayer – Lord, help me to hear you saying, “I am your hope” over all the other voices. Lord, your word says, you are the hope for hopeless so I’m running to you with both hands stretched out and grabbing on to you. Fill me up with hope and give me a tangible reminder today that hope is an unbreakable spiritual lifeline (Hebrews 6:19-20).

God, you know those things in my heart that I barely dare to hope for, today I give them to you, I trust them to you, and ask that you because I know that you can do more than I could ever guess, imagine or request in wildest dreams (Eph 3:20). God, you are my hope and I trust you. Amen.

Abiding love to all.

Steadfast,

~ Sundance

Posted originally on the conservative tree house April 9, 2021 | Sundance | 343 Comments

President Donald Trump has endorsed Florida Senator Marco Rubio for re-election.  This has angered many MAGA supporters who view Rubio, correctly, as a DeceptiCon establishment figure.  However, there is a pragmatic political approach evident that should be considered.

First, it must always be remembered that the Republican party is a private club.  The RNC is part of that private club.  Both the Democrat Party and the Republican Party are private clubs.  There are no federal, state or local election laws or rules that require club participation in order to run for elected office.  The clubs exist to facilitate the infrastructure of a process that is guided by inside rules made by club members.

Second, within the MAGA community there has been a recent argument about the Republican party that essentially boils down to this: (A) President Trump should start a new party; a new club; and/or (B) President Trump should reform the Republican club from within, removing the establishment elements.

Within the club President Trump can influence the rules and agenda, but the club itself must support them.  As we saw in 2016 there is a significant portion of the club who do not want Donald Trump within it.  Thus all moves to influence the club should be cast against this reality.

President Trump endorsing a club member should not be a surprise to those who have advocated for Trump to take-over the republican party.  Rubio has enough support within the club that a non-endorsement, or Trump’s support for a primary challenge, would exhaust a lot of political capital and ultimately result in a fight within the club.

Trump remaining inside the club, influencing the club, and carrying a sword of Damocles (endorsement or lack thereof) inside the club, could and should be viewed as the most pragmatic approach toward changing the club.  Indeed, President Trump has previously said he preferred to remain in the Republican party as opposed to starting a new party from the ground up.

Currently we have a rather unique political dynamic. Arguably, the club now needs Trump more than Trump needs the club. However, also arguably, the club infrastructure is factually a value to President Trump. 

The argument over “club value” boils down to one of political loyalty.  ¹Example: if members inside the club are permitted to undermine the MAGA agenda of Donald Trump -the historic reference- then what value does the club actually have?   ¹Example-2: if local and state club officials are tepid in their support, or worse yet actively work to undermine their candidate, then what value is the club?  This has been my argument for over 15 years. Alas, if I am to support the MAGA objective I must defer my opinion to the person who really is the decision-maker, Donald Trump.

Again, Trump remaining inside the club, influencing the club, and carrying a sword of Damocles (endorsement or lack thereof) inside the club could be viewed as the successful approach toward changing the club.  The historic reference here would be Barack Obama taking over the DNC club….. against the Clinton machine.

Clinton was to the DNC as Mitch McConnell and the Bush clan (et al) are to the RNC.  Reference what Hillary Clinton did to Bernie Sanders (’16); successfully. Reference what Bush (and club) tried to do to Trump in ’16; unsuccessfully. 

Barack Obama now owns the DNC club and has full control.  Donald Trump is still working through the process and does not have full control; hence he has to navigate through the tribal issues that remain inside the RNC club.

President Trump endorsing Marco Rubio is pragmatic and keeps options A and B open. If Trump had not endorsed Rubio, or endorsed a challenger, then Option B (takeover of the club) would be much harder as the club would fight to save Rubio.  Within the club Rubio is viewed as a more valuable club asset than Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski.

Yes, Rubio is a self-centered and compromised DeceptiCon and should not ever be trusted.  On the positive side Rubio is tough on China and aligned against the influence of China in the U.S.  That can be seen as a value.

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¹CTH readers will long-note that I have personally been an advocate for starting a new political party.  I know how challenging that approach is, and I am wide-eyed to the reality of it.  That said, I have also wanted the Republican party to reform so that a new party was not needed.  However, years of suffering through broken promises of club reform leave me strongly cynical…. but I am willing to give President Trump every opportunity to succeed because, well, if I am being honest, we have not had a person on the inside genuinely trying to reform the party.

However, if Trump endorses anyone like Murkowski or Haley, my support for Trump’s effort will end immediately.