It was a long, bloody battle to win our independence from the British Empire, but today is a milestone as we celebrate the signing of the Declaration Of Independence, by a bunch of rebels. This was not an act done lightly - every one of them knew they were also practically signing their own death warrant. This was a cause that required total unity. As Benjamin Franklin put it, "We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately."
Not only were they willing to band together, no matter where they were from or how much money or education they had or how they practiced their faith, they were willing to die to ensure freedom for future generations, even if they didn't live to see it themselves. And many didn't.
Sacrificial love is hard to come by these days, and certainly not easy to practice. We are hard wired to look out for our own interests and put our desires and comforts first, and society blatantly encourages us to seek self-centered solutions under the guise of 'living our own truth.' Sometimes I think that sacrificing our own wants and agenda can be almost as hard as laying down our life.
But while freedom is worth dying for, and we fight hard for our freedoms, many misinterpret what freedom really is. Many take it as the right to do whatever pleases them, the right to do what serves them best, even if someone else suffers. We've all seen thieves get angry when they're caught, murderers who are unrepentant to the end, because they were only doing what they wanted and serving themselves. But even in a free country, it is never their right to do such things, and being justifiably punished by having their freedoms curtailed is only just. Especially in a free country.
Freedom is not the right to sin, but the right to reject it and live righteously. There is no freedom in pursuing wrongdoing. The truly free understand that some guardrails are necessary, that freedom is abused when we use it as an excuse to run wild. Our government was specifically designed with checks and balances so no one person or party would have all the power and control (sorely tested over the years, of course, but that was the intent). Our founders worked hard to prevent being ruled by a dictator, but the answer is not to become little dictators ourselves, something even they struggled with from time to time.
Only when we are free from sin and its siren call are we truly free. This is what they don't want you to know: sin ties us down and traps us, but the straight and narrow, unbearably restrictive to evildoers, is where true life and freedom are.
We're not perfect, but we are free to strive for righteousness that shows love and grace to all, no matter their status or whether it serves our agenda. We are rebels when we rebel against the tyranny of a selfish society and extend life and liberty to all, dare I say, more than the pursuit of our own happiness.
God bless America. And God bless you.
Have a great 4th.
-Annalisa
(P.S. If you are so inclined, I recommend reading Galatians 5 in its entirety. It literally sums up freedom better than I can.)
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