So after a long weekend, I am celebrating Independence Day sitting on the porch watching the fireworks as they go off above the mountains. OKAY!! We live in a beautiful country, I give you that, but as I think about the 4th of July and what it means for our nation, I can’t help but think that we are really missing the mark. Independence Day is about freedom, right? And sure we are free from being ruled over by Great Britian, but people are more than just flesh. We are spiritual too and as I walk the streets, watch drag racing, sit and people watch, visit tourist attractions, I can’t help but see hurt and pain in the eyes of so many. Who are we kidding to say that America is really a free country? When marriages are falling apart because of porn addictions, and strongholds such as alcohol dictate households, children are sold into the sex industry daily, millions of people being controlled by their anger, and drugs declare their hold on so many others. And infinite amounts of advertisements tell us we need more to be satisfied and trap us into the endless cycle of self-hatred.
“There is nothing worse in this world than an enslaved man who naively believes himself free.”
As we celebrate and enjoy our Independence Day, many enslaved people still walk the streets. They don’t even realize their need for freedom. We throw parties, live life up every year thinking it’s our right and end it with a big BANG. All these activities can really keep us busy and trick us into thinking we really are okay, for a while.
We have so much to be thankful for, but can’t seem to pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps. We can’t seem to figure out what is wrong, so we turn to more and more stuff to try fixing the hurt inside. We don’t see that the enemy loves keeping us oppressed, we probably don’t even believe that there is someone fighting for our soul. Maybe our lack of awareness to our soul is what is numbing our hearts and leaves us thinking this is the way it is supposed to be.
Last year I read a book called, Screwtape Letters, by C.S. Lewis. The book is about a demon teaching his nephew how to become a master demon and this quote comes to my mind,
“We want cattle who can finally become food; He wants servants who can finally become sons. We want to suck in, He wants to give out. We are empty and would be filled; He is full and flows over.”
Satan eagerly is fighting for our souls, if that quote doesn’t convince you that there is a war at hand, keep living your so called “free” life, and see how far it gets you. Satan’s goal is to make us slaves, even in this great country-the freest place in the world, there are tons of slaves walking around.
But the story doesn’t end there! Jesus comes to offer us FREEDOM!! Real, authentic, chains are broken kind of freedom. It is not something you can do on your own, you can’t pull yourself up by your bootstraps, that is the beauty of this bloody cross. Romans 3:23 says “we have all fallen short” and because of that we are subject to death, BUT God loved us so much!! He couldn’t imagine you being separated from him forever. His love for you led him to send his Beloved Son, to a cross to die for YOUR sins. Even if it was only for you, He would have done it again. Even if you never believe, he would have done it again. Do you realize how costly this was for the Son? It cost him everything, he was betrayed, abandoned, and denied. His father turned his back on him, he was stripped of clothes, mocked and beaten. He was spit on and left for dead, and then he was killed. He came as a man and he can relate to your pain, because he felt it himself. He did it all for love, so that we could be clothed in righteousness. We didn’t deserve it, but it was given to us as a gift.
His purpose is to redeem his people, that doesn’t mean that we “just get to go to heaven” that means we are new creations NOW! And we are no longer controlled by our flesh. When the world may look at what we were dealt in life and just blame everyone else, God gives us the freedom to love and to have joy in the midst of the storms. Life doesn’t become easier, but it’s becomes worth living.
Count the cost. Freedom is NEVER free. Think about our own great country, AmUURica, the cost was high.
“No greater love than this for a friend to lay down his life”
Our soldiers are a small picture of this selfless love that Jesus demonstrates on the cross. And for this we celebrate, but lets not forget that even though our physical state is free, our spiritual state continues to be at war!
Beauty will save the world 