My fourth child’s deadline is this Friday. Heart Sisters is due to Abingdon Press in three days, peeps.

So when I started to feel that nudge, you know the one – that “crap” nudge . . . My gut reaction was to say . . . ahem. God?

Ain’t nobody got time for that.

Which, of course, only makes the intensity of His nudge escalate because who’s the idiot that tells God she doesn’t have time for something He’s asking her to do?

Again. Slow-Learner Syndrome gets the best of me.

I had planned to keep things a bit light around here since it’s kind of an intense week but hey . . . who am I to tell God to wait?

A friend of mine and I were talking earlier in the week about a situation in which she was discussing our president with a group of children.

To her shock, a few of the children began to spew hateful comments and disgust at the mere mention of his name.

But here’s the thing: those kids don’t just make that stuff up. They hear it from somewhere.

And very likely that somewhere is in the form of the parents at home.

When we teach our children to hate, we promote fear because you know what hate is? Fear on crack.

I hate fear. Now that’s something I can get behind and hate.

But another human being? No thanks. I would rather talk to my children about what unites us all instead of what divides us. There’s enough division talk as is.

And yes, I tend to vote Republican but I consider myself a Libertarian. As small business owners, we get a little hosed in the tax department.

But that doesn’t mean I wish our president ill will. It doesn’t mean I teach my children to hate him. And it certainly doesn’t mean I’m going to suggest the world will end because he’s in leadership.

I don’t fear this administration. I may not agree with everything they do but I don’t agree with everything on the other sides, either.

The right answers lie somewhere in the middle but the talking heads are so concerned with proving who’s right, the chasm widens and we stand further away from one another when really . . . if you listen closely, we’ve been saying a lot of the same things all along.

But you know what else I despise besides fear?

When someone spews out hate then hides behind the mask of “the truth.”

Hate is not truth. Again, hate is fear.

And fear is not from God.

So when we choose hate, we choose fear. And when we choose fear, we don’t choose God’s way.

To teach this to our children is like smoking in the car while they’re in the backseat with the windows closed.

They don’t have a choice.

We don’t all have to agree on the same stuff – that’s the beauty in where we live. We have the freedom to say and think and believe what we want to say and think and believe.

But I can’t seem to find the scriptures that say to hate those we don’t agree with. Or to teach your children to hate those we don’t agree with. Or that it’s OK to say things that are terrible about another person in the name of “truth.”

Hate never, ever wins because it’s rooted in fear and nothing that doesn’t come from Him ever wins. Ever.

On the other hand, love wins. Every time.

So while I may not agree, I vow to teach my children to still respect who’s in leadership. To not say hateful things about him or anyone else for that matter. To discuss what we believe and why but also cultivate an environment where they’re free to ask questions and not be fearful to think something different from their mom and dad.

I want my children to fight for real truth, not just a partition of the truth. I want them to fight for truth that’s rooted in Him and not hate or my own opinion.

And I certainly don’t want them to hide behind the mask of incorrect truth just so they can have a free pass to air their political agenda.

Because, in the end, the real truth is love and grace. Hate doesn’t fit into the equation anywhere. No matter what mask it wears.