Can we cut Ms. Utah USA a little slack?

The news has been aghast at the bobble a beauty pageant contest made this past weekend while trying to answer a question. Now, I have not attended a beauty pageant in years, and am highly unlikely to ever attend one again, so I do not know how the Miss USA pageant works. I don’t know if the contestants know what the questions will be ahead of time, but I’ve had to answer questions in front of people before.

It’s not easy. Even knowing the questions ahead of time does not make it much easier.

Now, typically I would use this opportunity to point out my personal dislike for beauty pageants, but rather than beat that drum here, I will simply share how I have spent the day. I was asked to answer a few questions. Theology/church history questions.

Now, especially when you get into that church history part, you are in my wheelhouse (a nice album from Brad Paisley, by the way). I may not be an expert in that area of knowledge, but it’s not for lack of trying.

However, knowing my answer is headed into a format that will see it circulated to more than a few hundred people, which is my typical blog audience, I have been semi-paralyzed at the fingertips over this. Let’s think about that:

I make my living, ultimately, by putting words together. Last week I shared with you my personal mission statement: I glorify God by passionately communicating truth to those around me. This is an arena in which I have piles of formal education and years of practical experience.

And the pressure locked me up, and more than just a little.

I am far from perfect, but I can assure you that I am at least as equipped, generally, to type out a news commentary as that young lady was to answer a question on the spot. So I can understand everything not coming out perfectly—and not even knowing why it happened.

So if you have to mock a young lady who tried for failing, I think you are showing more about yourself than you can ever say about her.

So let’s cut her some slack. I can assure you, there are plenty of things in this world to criticize that actually matter to your life instead of whether or not a 21-year-old can solve the problems of the world.

After all, neither of the elective branches of government have a positive approval rating in this country because they cannot solve those problems either. So, rather than mock Ms. Utah USA, how about you bust out a pen and paper or a keyboard and printer and send some mail of substance to your Representatives, Senators, and President.

Blast them. They’re paid to solve this stuff and together can only seem to make it worse.