Founder’s Note: Getting Off the Couch
by Rachel Pearson, Engage Founder & CEO
“Truthfully, ‘leadership’ can be an intimidating word. Many people are not willing to see themselves as a leader. Someone else always has more experience, money, power and influence. We think, ‘I’m just plain old me.’ Leadership feels like something big that you must live up to, gain with prestige, or be born into. Would you be willing to consider a simple new definition of leadership? Leadership is seeing a problem and then finding some people to help you do something to solve it.” –Senator James Lankford in Turnaround: America’s Revival
On a normal Saturday several years ago, I was on the couch after a long work week, watching Law & Order reruns, complaining about the state of both political parties. To which, the always colorful Sam Dawson replied, “Rachel, while you are lying on the couch watching Law & Order reruns and everyone else is chauffeuring their kids between activities, guess what…the partisan extremists took over!”
I was reminded of this exchange while reading Senator James Lankford’s recently published book, Turnaround: America’s Revival. Senator Lankford writes, “Leadership is not complicated; it’s getting off the couch and doing something with someone for somebody.”
Just before reading Senator Lankford’s new book, I finished In Defense of Partisanship by Julian E. Zelizer. Lest we allow ourselves to wallow in nostalgia through rose-colored glasses, Zelizer writes, “Partisan competitiveness reached its zenith by the end of the 1880’s. In a period when voting rates reached upward of 80 percent in the presidential elections, huge crowds gathered to participate in raucous party parades, barbecues, rallies, and other public events.” Continuing, “Civics was not the only thing at work. Alcohol was a fundamental draw, as was physical violence.”
There can be little doubt that while the majority of us were not involving ourselves in the messy business of party politics, many of our neighbors were working overtime, taking ideological control of the Republican and Democratic parties at the state and local levels.
The prescription for today’s partisan dysfunction offered in Turnaround: America’s Revival is one of personal engagement and honest reflection.
Senator Lankford offers a personal memoir bearing witness to his profound Christian faith, his conservative beliefs, and his love and respect for America, both as an idea and realized country, even with its transgressions and unrealized potential.
As a senator, he has become an expert at fielding outrage toward himself and Washington. And in asking us to recognize this anger and frustration as a reflection of our own personal fears and loss of confidence in the nation’s ability to solve difficult problems, he hopes to inspire.
“Washington doesn’t change the country; the country changes Washington. Bad or good. Right or wrong. Angry or peaceful. Wise or foolish. Anchored or drifting. We decide our culture together. If we don’t like who we have become, we are the only people who can change it.”
His writing is perceptive and considerate: “I understand the national anger; our problems are very real, so the anger is not unjustified.” He continues, “We know in our gut we are not powerless and without options; we live in a Republic. We just must decide whether ‘Me the people’ (that’s you) will take the first step for ‘We the people’ (that’s us). We each set an example and a course for the nation based on our actions and reactions.”
The power of Turnaround: America’s Revival is found in the personal honesty of the author, his commitment to the Constitution, to the truth as immutable, and to being of service in whatever way we are able.
“Truth is not a political statement; it is a statement of reality and provability. Truth is not a preference; it’s true if I like it or not. Truth can be tested and confirmed. Truth can be trusted and stood on in times of crisis. Truth doesn’t have to be arrogant; in fact, in Proverbs 3:3, the scripture says, ‘Do not let kindness and truth leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.’”
There can be no doubt Senator Lankford is a senator and messenger motivated by his Christian faith and conservative political beliefs. However, the cultural values and first principles he extols — safeguarding our constitutional republic, treating our neighbors as we would like to be treated ourselves, and engaging in acts of service, however small — are not the sole treasure of Christians or conservatives.
Whether believer, non-believer, Republican, Democrat, or somewhere in between, our radically fair form of government and the countercultural ideals of kindness and service are a bounty belonging to each of us.
When we were putting this issue together last month, I was initially unaware that May was Mental Health Awareness Month, so it’s plain serendipity that there are three features sharing stories and much-needed care solutions to mental health challenges. At Engage, we know that a woman’s economic security, her physical health, and her mental health are inextricably linked. Additionally, so many women not only bear their own mental health challenges but also navigate the treatment for loved ones.
I am excited to share this summer’s issue and introduce you to some truly extraordinary leaders who are giving generously to our families, communities, and country.
Whatever the summer months have in store for you, I wish you good health, grace, and some time to enjoy the sunshine.
You can reach Rachel Pearson at rachel@engagewomen.org.
EXCERPTS FROM
Turnaround: America’s Revival
On faith and belief: “I freely admit that there is no way to know the faith journey or perspective of everyone reading this book. I cannot know how you will think or respond to my spiritual story because faith is intensely personal. Americans have the constitutionally protected right to have any faith of their choosing, change their faith, or have no faith at all. That is one of the many wonderful things about being an American, and it is one of the basic human rights that our nation should prioritize exporting around the world at every opportunity.”
On The Constitution: “Our Constitution has been our legal foundation for two and a half centuries. It can be amended but never surrendered. Our Constitution has been legally challenged thousands of times over our history, but it is still our foundation. Every time someone has proclaimed a ‘constitutional crisis’ in our history, the Constitution has endured.
Any challenges we face in government are not because our Constitution is weak or out of date. Our problems occur when we don’t follow our Constitution. The endless executive orders, the regulatory chaos, and the unwillingness of Congress to do its job show our weaknesses, not the Constitution’s.”
On loving your neighbor: “The principle of loving your neighbor is so simple and uncomplicated that it needs no explanation, but it needs a lifetime to learn to implement. It calls us to give our time, instead of just our finances. It moves us to see the people around us as people made in the image of God, even when we disagree. It even causes us to show respect for others in front of our children, so the next generation will learn to love others from us.”
