Ramblings about Faith, Poverty, Politics, and the Will of God

I am sick of politics.

As many of you know I have been heavily involved in politics for almost 2 years now.  I worked on 2 Presidential Campaigns and helped to start a Consulting and Web-based Campaign Solutions Company that is now operating in almost all 50 states.  In short, I climbed the political power ladder fast.  But I'm sick of it.  Politics, at this point, does nothing to excite me and even angers me.  i am so disenchanted with the ideologies and polarization.  I'm not liberal.  Heck, I'm not even Conservative.  I'm CATHOLIC!

You see, I never WANTED to be in a position of influence.  I had no aspirations of riding in freight elevators and walking through the maze of a hotel kitchen on the way to an event with a Presidential Front-Runner.  (Although I WILL admit, that stuff was pretty fun - like living out a scene from The West Wing).  I began my foray into politics simply because I was scared for the future of my children and I wanted to do something about it.  I started out just tweeting (yes, I tweet - follow me @DOHK!)  in support of a candidate and then one thing led to another and before I knew it I was helping with policy and message, organizing volunteers on a National scale and running the State of Virginia for the campaign with 11,000 volunteers waiting for my direction!  Yikes! That's a long way from the Twitterverse!!  Then that candidate left the race and I began to work for the next front-runner.  That was a National role!  Double yikes!

Now here I am working on the company that was the brainchild of the collective experience of some of us who worked together through the two campaigns, talking to Senators and Congressman, Governors and Campaign Staffers and I am feeling as though its time for me to move on.

But move on to where?

Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love my coworkers.  I have made some amazing friendships with some Faith-filled people across this nation and for that I am so thankful.  I have had experiences I never could have thought up in my imagination and learned a lot of valuable lessons about myself.

The most valuable lesson I have learned is that despite it all, I am still "Mommy."

For almost 2 years I have been juggling homeschooling, the house, the job, the campaigning, and my marriage.  That is a lot of juggling.  Throw in there that in November I suffered some very serious health problems that almost left my kids without their Mommy and well...... it may be time to simplify!  Yet I feel a very deep obligation to my fellow political types who prayed me through my illness and offered me their friendship, their support, their time and even their financial help at times.  So if I cut this tie, it will sting.

Still this has been growing on my heart.  I find myself seeing more and more reasons why I need to be moving on and leaving all I have set in motion in other (probably more!) capable hands.

I hear it in my son's voice, "Do you have to have another conference call? Now?"

in my daughter's voice, "Why cant we spend more time on the computer - you do, even if its for work."

in my three year old's voice, "Mommy can't do a fun thing now because she has to work."

Some women can do it.  I managed it for 2 years.  But now that the work I am doing is no longer flexible and cant be confined to naptimes and after bedtimes, my kids feel the difference and that simply can't be.

So in my heart I think I know what I must do.  Now I have to make my head listen.

God decided to throw me some help in the form of a very powerful book called "Happy are You Poor."  (yep that's us alright!) by Thomas DuBay.  Wow.  Just Wow.

I will caution you - if you read this book with an attitude of prayer your life will never be the same. It can't be.  It will cause you to examine EVERYTHING in a completely different context.  The context of the pure, unadulterated Gospel Truth that has been sadly watered down - so much so that we (even us uber-catechized) Catholics have never considered it.

The book deals with Evangelical Radical Poverty.  Now you see why so many of us have never considered it?  Radical Evangelistic Poverty?  I am sure most of you have never heard of it outside the stories of St. Francis. St. Phillip Neri and the Cure d'Ars. ( I know I hadn't!)  But it is a Gospel Calling - for ALL Christians.

This book can be ordered Here

My husband and I have been pouring over the pages and deciding what we need to change in our lives so that we can live this Gospel calling.  Of course this led me to once again consider my position in politics.

I have been saying for a while now that we need to change the Culture here in America if our Nation is going to survive as Founded.  I had hoped that I could help bring that about through my political work.  That is one of the reasons  I stuck with it for so long.  Now, however, I have a completely different perspective.  Oh yes, America needs a complete cultural re-vamp, but its not going to come through politics.  Nor will it come through legislation. It going to be from the inside out.

I am completely convinced that it will happen when we Catholics learn how to live our Faith radically - ALL aspects of it - and through living it, we will encourage change.  (Thats why the Radical Poverty that Christ calls us to is called "Evangelical.")

So that is my goal.  The problem is where to start!  I have so much on my heart that I would like to do, and thanks to my political work a lot of skills that I bring to the table.  I have a heart for ministry, and a knack for writing, speaking, running things, organizing and social media.  What do I do with all that!?

I have some pretty wild, big ideas about how to really begin living this Evangelistic Poverty and what sort of Ministry I would like to do.  Perhaps I will share those in another post.

For now, though, I think its starts with getting back to basics.  Making sure that life is centered on Christ.  Asking God the Father for guidance, and being open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.  It starts with returning to being "just Mommy" and taking off some of the extra hats.  It starts with reading an extra bedtime story to my kids and having a few days go by before any of us pick up a laptop or look at a screen.  It begins with prayer.  It begins with making the changes that my husband I feel are necessary to live Gospel Poverty.  Sitting in Adoration, and teaching my children that we are Pilgrims on this earth, traveling to our real Home.   Then slowly the rest will become clear and we will see what amazing adventure God has in store for us next!