The voting booth is no place for nostalgia. We vote to preserve people and culture, not to keep a town or area locked into a bygone time.
Right now, on the docket in Hope, is an opportunity to embrace real, needed change. Just to remind you, we are talking about a new fire station and new, much needed equipment for our fire fighters. This out to be a no brainer. We shouldn’t even have to vote on this. Next, we’re talking about updating two of our current sports fields: tennis and soccer. These areas are used so much! The players that use these deserve to have updated areas of play. Next up is a splash pad for Northside Park. YES! This will be used so much the concrete will wear out! And then finally on the docket is a proposed Aquatic Center. It will include indoor and outdoor pools (if you’ve enjoyed the oldest operating city pool in the state recently, you’ll understand why), indoor basketball, volleyball and pickleball courts and an indoor walking track. And it’s all funded by a 1% sales tax. Why would anyone say no to this?
There are lots of ways to grow a city. Economic development is key. A healthy school system helps. A strong hospital system is a must. Hope is seeing drastic improvements in each of these areas. But these are not the only areas required for city growth. A fourth area that must be included is a strong investment in families. The kind of investment I’m talking about is exactly what these Issues propose. Please vote “Yes” on Issues 4,5 and 6!
When we talk about change, we must ask ourselves what the long-term impact of the change will be. Change because we like new or different things isn’t helpful. Change to further an agenda is good, but if we don’t now the agenda, we will probably be surprised by the change. Most people work from an agenda. I know I do! I am constantly working to reach people who are lost and dying without Jesus. I am passionate about the Church, so I work to encourage and equip the Church for the mission we’ve been called to. The agenda I follow would never allow me to do anything that would push someone away from Jesus or put a black eye on the Church. I have an agenda when it comes to my family. I work to provide for, protect, mature and raise my family in a faith-filled environment. Business has an agenda that revolves around profit and image. Schools have an education driven agenda. You get the point. The problems come when issues arise that challenge our chosen agendas. When different agendas clash, we have issues.
Someone selling drugs to my kids in the backyard, challenges my agenda. I’ll get upset, call the police and have some harsh words for anyone who attempts a transaction on my property. Given the faith-filled nature of my agenda, I would get upset if the school tried to lead my child into a transgender lifestyle. (That’s not happening here but it is in schools in other parts of the nation.) I would get upset if a weed farm tried to establish itself in our area. I wouldn’t be in favor of a casino being built in SW AR. These are all examples of agenda’s colliding. The question that must be asked is, where does your agenda lead you? If it is established, what lasting consequences does it have?
Issues 4,5 and 6 are pro family and pro community. Please vote FOR them.
What’s your agenda(s)? If all your wishes/prayers/hopes/dreams came true today, would the world be a better place? And not just for you, but for everyone? Our city leaders must think about these things if the towns we love are going to thrive in the next 100 years. Our churches must think about these things, too!
If your agenda doesn’t produce what you think it should, what can you do? Don’t give up or make up your mind to stay put just because that’s the way you’ve always done things. There is another alternative. Change! I can guarantee at the end of your life, you will want to see the things you’ve believed in and fought for have made the world we live in better. You will want to know your life wasn’t wasted. It’s never to late to think about your agenda and adjust it for the best possible scenario for the people around you. Change is good today, tomorrow and always!