pie-crust is made to be broken

As a woman who loves to bake and often fails miserably at it, the title of my post today frustrates the "I-want-to-be-the-best-wife and chef" part of me. THAT, my friends, is why I steer clear of making my own pie-crust. Inevitably, in an attempt to wrap tinfoil around the edges, pieces begin to crumble, and I follow quickly behind and begin to do the same.

The same thing happens to us when promises are unfulfilled. Virtually no feeling is more frustrating than being the victim of a broken promise--whether it's small (like someone promising to pay you back for the soda and never doing it) or life-changing (like a broken vow of marriage resulting in divorce). Charles Spurgeon said this about making vows and not keeping them:

"Those who are quick to promise are generally slow to perform. They promise mountains and perform molehills. He who gives you fair words and nothing more feeds you with an empty spoon. People don't think much of a man's piety when his promises are like pie-crust: made to be broken."

Every current and future politician on Capitol Hill needs to meditate on, memorize, even tattoo this quote on their bodies (That's a sight I would like to see... no just kidding, I would not). Can you imagine if we had a government of people who feeds us with fair words--not empty promises that lead to letdown or skepticism?

This is a particularly poignant quote this week as Scott Brown was elected as senator of Massachusetts after more than 4 decades of MA being a blue state. It couldn't be any clearer what the people think: they are sick of empty promises by politicians. They are sick of men and women who tumble headlong into Washington, thirsty for power, and ignore what the people want.

Glenn Beck made an interesting observation last week on his show when he was interviewing Sarah Palin. Have you ever seen a politician who returns from his tenure in Washington and you think, "Wow, you are a BETTER person than before!"

Politicians like that don't exist anymore because they are politicians--they proudly consider it their job to legislate, govern, and often meddle. What would Washington look like if people were elected who went reluctantly, knowing that power can ruin a person--but they go because the people think they're best suited for the job. They know that people should be free to enjoy the fruits of their labor, and they know that government's only role is to defend and protect. George Washington accepted the Presidency reluctantly following the War for Independence. Where are those people?

If you're interested, read the following article by John Stossel enumerating Obama's Broken Promises. I say all of this with a grain of salt, knowing that some promises are better left broken--in some cases, Obama's administration is trying to pin us to the ground and feed us poison. And we're only in year one...

http://stossel.blogs.foxbusiness.com/2010/01/20/obamas-broken-promises/