Important Lessons I've Learned Living In A Wheelchair: A Message Dedicated to My Liberal Friends"

There are some notes that I write simply because I want to begin a good conversation. Every once in a while though, there are notes I actually feel compelled to write even when it is not convenient schedule wise. I guess when God keeps waking you up in the middle of the night to remind you that you need to do something, you had better just get busy and do it! So here goes! WARNING: Even though I know this note is long, please, please read unto the very end! There's more here than it first appears!

I want to explain to my friends why a particular irony exists within me. I know I have driven some of you crazy at times and for that I certainly do apologize. The question I want to answer for everyone is this: why do I as a minister and a person steeped in the discipline of theology rather than politics – who doesn't even believe that our primary answers rest in the political system but in spiritual revival – find it necessary from time to time to even comment on political issues at all? This is a worthwhile question that does deserve some explanation.

The best way to answer this question is to introduce you to my parents specifically in terms of how they related to me and my physical situation. Dad, on the one hand was always very time conscious – he wanted things done yesterday! Therefore, if Dad was helping me with something, he often thought it was easier to do it himself than to give me time to do what I could first. To be honest, I sometimes liked Dad's approach because my life seemed to go a lot faster when he was around! Mom, on the other hand, was exactly the opposite. She was going to make sure that I did everything I could for myself in order to be as independent as possible even if she had to sacrifice a lot of her life to do so. The interesting thing is, even though my parents had almost opposite approaches, I knew they both loved me and cared for me very much.

Dad worked rotating shifts as I was growing up which meant that I was around Mom a lot more than Dad. I sometimes resented Dad's absence for key events in my life; even though I knew he had no control over it. In retrospect, I realize God had a plan in it all. Because I was around Mom a lot more, she demanded a lot more of me. Mom would make me work for things. She would often sit on our hands to resist the temptation to give me something so that I would learn to exercise my muscles by reaching for it myself. Mom's tough-as- nails like attitude sometimes seemed mean, because I didn't see the big picture. As much as I loved the faster and frankly easier pace of life when my dad was around, if the roles had been reversed, I am almost certain that I would not have gotten as far in life as I have even though I still have a LONG way to go!

Somewhere around my late high school years, an interesting change took place, a role reversal of sorts. On the one hand, Dad started becoming more patient about letting me do things for myself. He didn't seem quite as in a hurry as he was earlier. Mom, on the other hand, begin to realize that she had done such a good job teaching me to be independent and self-sufficient that I now had trouble asking for help even when it was justified! (Perhaps it really was better to ask for help with your laundry in college rather than spending three hours trying to fold it yourself when you're taking a full load of classes)! So in the years that followed Mom and Dad tried to help me reach a delicate balance between maintaining my independence, and recognizing that maximizing that independence might at times involve asking help from others when appropriate.

Today, I still struggle to find that perfect balance. Some days I can be lazy and wait for Jackie to do something that I really could have done myself with a little extra effort. Other days I'm exactly the opposite; I try to cram too much into one day and end up paying the price down the road – or I end up trying to do something myself that I should really wait for Jackie to help me! I realize more and more that balance is an art form and not an exact science and the only way I will ever come close to doing it right is with the Holy Spirit's help.

So what does all of this have to do with politics? On one level, almost nothing; on another level EVERYTHING! Our government and our country are torn between the extremes of two completing philosophies. Democrats are all too willing to "help" people with things they can do better themselves or find more appropriate help elsewhere. Republicans, on the other hand, are all too willing to encourage self-reliance but often seem unwilling to get involved in the personal lives of people and mentor them so they can become independent themselves. So what gives? How do we come to some resolution? To explain what needs to happen, let's quickly look at two government programs for the disabled with which I am well acquainted.

One program called Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a very poorly-run federal government program that is so overburdened by regulations that Social Security workers have volumes of material to try to keep track of. Even though the federal program has added provisions to encourage self-support for clients capable of becoming self-sufficient, these programs get so little attention that most people don't even realize they exist. Sadly, this means many people who could perhaps eventually become self-supporting never have the opportunity because they are unaware of their options. Therefore, the majority of people receiving SSI are on it for the long haul once they start receiving it, including many who have the capacity to become productive citizens.

In contrast to SSI, Vocational Rehabilitation is largely state-run with federal grants being block-granted to individual states. Unlike SSI, vocational rehabilitation programs are built around specific plans designed by the individual with the assistance of trained counselors to help individuals become as financially productive as possible. Unlike SSI, people are usually recipients of rehabilitation assistance for a relatively short period of time until they are able to provide for themselves. It is a rare example of the way government programs should work, but unfortunately there are relatively few like it around.

I have used the crude illustration of these two government programs to illustrate a couple key points. I, like many of my conservative friends, are not at all oblivious or uncaring about the very real needs people face. What concerns me though is that I see a lot of people growing up in a culture where they associate compassion with the impatience my father used to have. Just give me what I need so I don't have to struggle at all. These are largely the liberals in our culture. I know my liberal friends really do care, but some fail to realize that not all intervention is healthy. They are like my dad was; they just want to do whatever it takes to get the job done even if it unknowingly inhibits one's ultimate independence. Many of these same people associate the hard-nosed tough love approach of Mom with selflessness and insensitivity to others in need. They need to learn that not all struggle and pain is bad. If the only goal of our life is to avoid suffering at any cost, we will grow to be weak, feeble and unproductive people. The more we promote reliance on the government rather than targeted assistance from it, the less freedom we really have.

On the other hand, my conservative friends need to learn that some targeted help can actually make a person more independent in the long run. Just like I had to learn that there were times when help really was productive in the long run, my conservative friends need to learn that they need to personally involve themselves in the lives of people who really need help. That doesn't always mean a handout – though sometimes it might! More often, it means a commitment to open your heart, your home, your office to mentor people who need guidance without always doing things for them. Even when Mom sat on her hands to keep from helping me when I struggled, she would still be there to encourage me as I worked with all my might. Even when Mom was being as tough as nails, she still remained involved. Conservatives need to learn to care less about their privacy and be willing to get involved! If conservatives simply tell people simply to pull themselves up by their boot straps without being willing to be involved in their lives on a personal level to help them succeed then they deserve the labels of selfishness they often receive.

To summarize, my disdain for big government does not mean a hate for government as a whole. This disdain for big-government approaches to helping people (like the Affordable Care Act) comes from two primary places. First, long-term dependence the government, no matter how well-intentioned, more often than not minimizes people's ability to provide for themselves over time. Second, the more involved government becomes in one's life, the less freedom an individual ultimately has. It's like an adult returning home to live with his parents expecting to have the same freedom as if he or she lived on their own! Your parents will always love you, but if they are paying the bills they have every right to a greater say about what happens in your life! This does not mean that there is never a place for government involvement, especially on a short-term basis as I suggested with my rehabilitation example above. Similarly there are times when it is appropriate for parents to assist their adult children on a temporary basis is perfectly appropriate. But, I also realize that promoting a smaller government, means that places like churches and ministries have to be willing to get their hands dirty. We have to be comfortable more places than just the pulpit! People don't always need money, but they do need our support.

To my liberal friends, I say this: I know you are not bad or evil; I NEED YOU IN MY LIFE! Sometimes, I just get frustrated when you’re just too much like my Dad was! My disdain for big government is not a disdain for you or your intentions. As a matter of fact, there is a place for you in my life. If it weren't for you, I would never learn to ask for help even when it's appropriate! If it seems like I am tougher toward you, it’s not because I love you less but because right now pendulum seems way too focused in one diection. Thank you for reminding me that there are time when government can be a force for good when done with discipline and restraint. To my conservative friends, thank you for reminding me that there is no substitute for giving your very best even when it hurts and takes longer to do something than to have it done for you. But please remember, that not every manifestation of "independence" may be real independence in the long run. Not all requests for help are demeaning or ill-legitimate.(I'm so glad I got over asking for help with my clothes)!

As a minister first and foremost, and an energized citizen second, I have greatly curtailed my involvement in political issues. However, as a part of making a clean break, I really felt like I had to explain my passion, even if it was misplaced at times. It is really hard for me not to feel passionate about things that strike so close to home. I hope by understanding the roots of my passion that those of you who get frustrated by it at times at least have a better appreciation for why. So as I choose to back away in order to pursue a more single-minded focus toward a spiritual revival---the only real cure for what ails us--- I hope all will continue to pray for me as I continue to do my best to follow God.