Thursday, May 04, 2006

The Greatest Gift:Windspike's Sure Happy It's Thursday Challenge

If you listen to the president, perhaps you might be tricked into thinking that there is a greater gift to give than your life on the front lines of the W, Rove and Co's "war" on terror. Is any one else pushed to nausea by the cavalier nature of the W?

Have a gander:
In my travels across the great land, a comment that I hear often from our fellow citizens is, "Mr. President, I pray for you and your family." It's amazing how many times a total stranger walks up and says that to me. You'd think they'd say, "How about the bridge?" Or, "How about filling the potholes?" (Laughter.) No, they say, "I've come to tell you I pray for you, Mr. President."

And the only thing I know to do is to look at them in the eye and say, that is the greatest gift that a fellow citizen can do for those of us who have been entrusted to lead our country. And for that -- (applause.) And so I thank thanks -- I say thanks to the millions of Americans who pray each day for our nation, our troops, and our elected leaders.
But wait, the syrup is laid on thick today. I ask you all, if the W truly believes what he is preaching, where are the actions that prove he stands behind his rhetoric?
Prayer is a gift from Almighty God that transforms us, whether we bow our heads in solitude, or offer swift and silent prayers in times of trial. Prayer humbles us by reminding us of our place in creation. Prayer strengthens us by reminding us that God loves and cares for each and every soul in His creation. And prayer blesses us by reminding us that there is a divine plan that stands above all human plans.

In the stillness and peace of prayer we surrender our will to God's will, and we learn to serve His eternal purposes. By opening ourselves to God's priorities, our hearts are stirred and we are inspired to action -- to feed the hungry, to reach out to the poor, to bring aid to a widow or to an orphan or to the less fortunate.
I am convinced that we are smarter than this. This leads me to today's challenge. Let's call this:

Windspike's Sure Happy It's Thursday Greatest Gift Challenge
  • Do you think that you could identify one gift greater than prayer that the nation's leaders might find handy?
  • What do you think it would, could, or should be?
  • Explain.

5 comments:

isabelita said...

Good frickin' Jeebus on a runaway skateboard...the nightmare just won't end! (deep breath and exhale to relieve cranial pressure)
Okay, as an exercise of my ability to fantasize, I would say, a solid free education for all US citizens. And education covers everything, in this fantasy, from academics to family planning.
But when I consider the actual state of US public education, my pulse surges again, and not in exhilaration.
And i'm too depressed to go further in my explication...

Anonymous said...

Do you think that you could identify one gift greater than prayer that the nation's leaders might find handy?

Freedom from hubris. 'splains itself.

But, that said, I think that Bush is absolutely right. Many are praying for him--half in the way that he suggests, half for that volcano in the Canaries to explode and the ensuing tsunami to wipe out the Eastern seaboard.

Anonymous said...

We'd all be better off if people spent less time praying and more time thinking critically.

Neil Shakespeare said...

They just did that study that found that prayer doesn't work, and in fact does more harm than good (something I expected since childhood). So I'd say almost anything would be better.

SheaNC said...

I have a gift for him! I would give President Bush a free spinal adjustment. I remember well all those times, such as the presidential debates, when he was all hunched over and grimacing. I could give him a serious spinal adjustment... a little pounding here... and little twisting there... pounding, twisting, crunching, grabbing that spinal chord and...

Okay, sorry. Too graphic? Not graphic enough?

"Just five minutes, Worm your honor, him and me, alone..." - Pink Floyd