Tag Archives: freedom

Waking Up To Reality

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The universe is a miraculous place…from forming stars and interacting galaxies to the beauty of a tiny flower petal, it speaks forth wonders.  That is why spending time outside-camping, hiking, watching a sunset-brings refreshement and renewal.

Why does nature move us so much?  Why do we have this need within us sometimes to get away from the noise and clamor of the world to the quiet and solitude of a peaceful, beautiful place?  It seems we are made with a hunger for more than just existing.  We are not just flesh and blood, but spirit also.  Flesh and blood gets sick, grows old, decays, passes away…but we sense that that is not all that we are.   We have a sense of eternity within us.  Our spirit longs for more!  We desire beauty, order, transcendence.  We desire to know where we came from, why we are here, where we are going. 

Questions, questions….awaiting an answer.  God says ….  get to know Jesus.

 Knowing Christ is becoming alive.  Someone once said (I don’t remember who) that “becoming a Christian is waking up to reality.”   It is like a homecoming – finally finding out what you are searching for . It is the start of a jouney…… the greatest adventure with the greatest Guide.  It is not having all the answers but knowing the God who does.

Become aquainted with the designer of the universe!   He really is the way….and the truth…..and the life! What could be more amazing than that?

Celebrating Freedom

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As we celebrate the beginnings of America, I feel blessed to live in a land where we aspire to certain truths.  The truths which we hold to be self-evident.  I know America has failed at times to live up to her own standards, but that does not change the actual fact that we are all created equal and are endowed by our Creator with certain inalienable Rights, among which are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.  We have to keep trying to live up to these truths.

As we consider how to do this, it may be helpful to go to an old Jewish source, the book of Leviticus.  Leviticus 19:15 states,

“Do not pervert justice; do not show partiality to the poor OR favoritism to the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.”

To judge your neighbor fairly is an honorable goal!  We should avoid showing favoritism to the great, the rich, the beautiful, the famous.    Avoiding partiality to the poor seems an odder statement and difficult to understand.   But does showing unfair partiality to those who are poor, either in resources, talents, work ethic, or some other way really help them?  Does lowering a standard in an effort to make everyone feel good give a benefit to anyone in the long run?   Are we not, in doing this, ignoring or holding back some of those who  struggle hard to achieve success?

The standard should be the same for all.  We should not ignore the shortcomings of the great because we want to curry favor, and we should never ignore giving honor to those who struggle against fewer resources to achieve success.

Perverting justice never really helps anyone……..it hurts us all.

There are a lot of problems reflected in our American institutions and we can do better.  But we need to remember that these problems only reflect our own hearts.  That is where our real problems lie.  That is where we need change.   Our trouble start with ourselves.

So on this 4th of July, let us reflect on our great country and its challenges but then let us turn and look at our own hearts.  How do we sometimes pervert justice to those around us in our individual and personal lives?

If we change, our country will change.  If individuals change, our institutions will change.

May the Lord bless you this holiday and all the days ahead!

AMERICAN Freedom is Messy ….DO WE STILL WANT IT?

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According to the declaration of Independence,  “Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers FROM the consent of the governed,”  and that if that power “becomes destructive” it is the right of the people governed to bring it back in line with it’s intended role.

So what is government’s intended role?  Is it not to provide a safe and healthy environment for each citizen to be able to enjoy their God-given rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, while leaving the specifics of what that means up to the individual?

The government is meant to serve its citizens.  It should provide a safe framework within which its citizens freely pursue their life interests.  It is not meant to be the source of all we need – only to promote an environment where each individual has opportunity to grow and work and live and thrive.

The US government is not there to micromanage its population.  Today, it seems that politicians are involving themselves more and more in the more intimate details of our lives.  They are interfering more and more in decisions that we should be making for ourselves.   I am talking about decisions like where your kids go to school and what they are taught.  Who your doctor is or if you can go to church on Sunday morning or what time you have to be home at night?

All of these decisions have, in many instances, been taken away from people and made by the government, especially in recent covid times.  To me, the important thing is NOT whether the government is doing something good or something bad.  It is WHO is making the decision.  Let me give you an example of what I mean.

As a physician, I try to have a healthy diet.  It is healthy to eat  a lot of vegetables.   So, because it is a good thing for my health, I eat a lot of vegetables.  It would be a GOOD thing for everyone’s health if everyone ate a lot of vegetables.  Perhaps the government should mandate that every citizen  eat 5 helpings of vegetables a day.  After all, it would benefit society as a whole.

Why would it be wrong for a government to mandate something that is in everyone’s best interest?  Because that is NOT the government’s job!  The government that mandates good things can also mandate bad things.  Every time we cede power to our government to make another decision in our life, even if it is a good decision, we must consider what will happen when the government is not so wise.

It is best that individual citizens retain as much power as possible over their own lives.  Sometimes we will make good decisions, and sometimes we may not.  The point is that WE make the decisions.   If you value your freedoms…then it is not just a matter of whether the government is doing something good or doing something bad….it is a matter of whether the government is making the decision in the first place.

Freedom in America includes the ability to make personal decisions.  Therefore, by definition, freedom means having the ability to make a wrong decision!  That can make freedom messy!  But I would rather be free and make a wrong decision, than have my government make my decisions for me, even if they are right.

No person or institution will ever always make the right decision.  If you are hurt by an incorrect decision, let it at least be YOUR OWN!