There is little doubt that there are many suffering in this country these days. Lay-offs, cut backs and business closures have affected families from coast to coast.

Foreclosures are mounting. In many cases this is not due to those unscrupulous mortgage lenders nor those who signed loan papers on a home they could, at the time of purchase, well afford. There are families who simply find themselves hostage to an economic downturn.

Let’s face it, if you have a number of years invested in one company and lose your employment, where do you go to make a salary commensurate with your prior earnings?

Look into the cost of day care for those with young children. Many times it is foolish for both parents to work outside the home to do nothing more than cover the cost of a quality child care facility.

Prices at the pump are draining what little extra money many families were fortunate enough to squirrel away each month. Drive on over to the local market and find your food cost has risen another ten to twenty dollars over the prior week.

Those on fixed incomes [especially living on nothing more than Social Security], find their yearly cost of living increase is a pittance at best which barely covers the increase attached to their medicare payments.

Sure there are social, religious, and independent organizations who are equipped to help those in need. Many are simply to proud to seek help.

Children are moving back in with parents, parents with their children, due to economic constraints.
Not ideal perhaps, but in some cases necessary for survival.

Each point made above is no doubt relative to the lives of many who live in our America. The post could continue to infinity as every situation is unique.

Unless you are one of the fortunate few (and I certainly am not one) who have a great deal of personal wealth there is no question, times right now are somewhat tough.

But……..

Imagine living in a country where we did not have the right to point out its shortcomings.

Visualize life ruled by vicious dictators or those who would choose to starve their population for their own personal gain.

No free speech, freedom of religion, independent elections by the people, or the right to a fair and just court system would be far worse than the circumstances outlined above.

Could we survive as a nation if the right to protest those decisions with which we disagree were stripped away?

Yes, we are living under an economic storm cloud right now. No, it is not easy, and certainly we have every right to make our concerns and hardships known.

We can pray for wisdom in those who have the power to institute change and do whatever we can individually to help our fellow man. In the end, no matter the challenges we face individually or as a country, we at least have the potential to rebound and come back stronger.

Faith, family and friends have seen this nation through tougher times than this. While it is little consolation as wallets are pinched to the maximum, remembering you are not alone in whatever your situation can sometimes be of comfort.