I was thanking God today for many things: Jesus, family, the freedom to worship, this great nation we live in.
Something as simple as writing this is a freedom I don’t take lightly either. Freedom of speech to a writer is like having oxygen to breathe.
I try to write responsibly with vision and purpose and with the Great Commission (Matt. 28:19) in mind. Now that being said, that doesn’t mean I shy away from controversy in the stories I write if it leads my characters to seek His will. There may even be characters who choose not to accept the message of salvation, and I deal with the consequences of that, too. The point is, trusting Jesus is also a freedom that has been granted us–He gives us free will.
As I’ve touched on in previous posts, my characters are often ordinary people living in ordinary towns, searching out the American dream–life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. As is the case with real-life individuals, each character’s vision of the American dream may be different. Sometimes, I even sit back and shake my head at the characters I create, baffled by the choices they make.
With the busyness of life, we tend to let our focus shift from time to time and prioritize things according to our perceived order of importance on a particular day. Sometimes we should just pause, I think, and glory in the freedom of living. There’s something so incredibly off-balance when a mid-summer rainbow leaves us unmoved or the chatter of a happy toddler is looked at more as an annoyance than a miracle.
Thank you, Heavenly Father, for this great nation in which we live…for freedom to express our thoughts, our hopes, our dreams. Thank you for those who fight for our freedom on a daily basis. Thank you for the cross and the One who paid the ultimate price.
God, please bless America and let us be a blessing to You.
A question for you to ponder…What particular freedom means the most to you today?
Comments 2
Thanks for asking this question! Freedom of religion is the one that came to mind. We live in a country with a vast number of houses of worship. That ‘still small voice’ just now planted the seed that whenever I pass one, I should pray for the underground church–our brothers and sisters in Christ who do not have the same freedom that we have in being able to assemble together legally, and who so often are punished for it. We take so many things for granted, because we have always had them; someone else fought the battles for us. Let us never forget.
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I agree, Patti! And what a gift and a blessing to be able to share like this.