Empathy for a Fish . . .

Sometimes, there’s just no accounting for feeling. I’ve been stopping by a Chinese restaurant lately, on the way home, for takeout. I order wontons in spicy peanut sauce, and sit quietly waiting until they come out of the kitchen with my order. There’s a fish tank in the waiting area. It’s about 5 ft long, 3 ft high, and about 2 ft wide. Inside the tank are several 4-inch gold fish and koi fish, and one very large white and orange, sad-eyed koi.

I sit there, next to the tank, and the fish come over and swim near me. The large koi swims back and forth, up and down, round and round–in a tank that is way too small for him. He does that all day and night, 24 hrs a day, 7 days a week. If I put my hand to the tank he swims alongside, next to my hand, as long as it’s there, as if he were seeking solace. If I just sit, he swims around and and around, watching me, coming over to the side, staring at me with those dark, sad eyes, and resting in place, until I get up to pay and leave.

I don’t think I can go back there anymore. The sight of him trapped in that prison is making my heart ache. I want to rescue him. Do you think the Lord’s heart aches like that for us, trapped here in our own bondage?

Creation itself [will] one day . . . share the glorious freedom of the children of God. For we know that up to the present time all of creation groans with pain, like the pain of childbirth.  But it is not just creation alone which groans; we who have the Spirit as the first of God’s gifts also groan within ourselves as we wait for God to make us his children and set our whole being free. (Romans 8:21b-23)

Peace is Another Word for Freedom . . .

From my friend Adele’s Missionary Blog:

Peace is a deep disposition of the heart.
It is humility,
an ability to let go of the need to be right
in our own eyes or the eyes of others,
an ability based on the knowledge
that our rightness or wrongness in any issue
is totally irrelevant to God’s love for us
or for our neighbor.
The peace that comes with claiming our self in God
is the foundation of our ability
to carry God’s reconciling love to others
in the most humble places
and humble, everyday ways . . .

(quote by church historian Roberta C. Bondi)

Working Out Our Freedom . . .

This Freedom thing is tricky. When I first started walking with the Lord in earnest, I was in my early twenties. I remember walking out of church that afternoon thinking “I am never going to sin again.”

I bought a New American Bible and started reading. I was about two chapters through the New Testament when it dawned on me. This “no-more-sinning” plan was going to take a lot more change than I figured on. It was definitely going to be a long-term process.

Walking the Freedom Trail . . .

If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. (John 8:36)

Christ has set us free to live a free life. So take your stand! Never again let anyone put a harness of slavery on you.

It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows. For everything we know about God’s Word is summed up in a single sentence: Love others as you love yourself. That’s an act of true freedom. My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit. (Galatians 5:1,13-14,16)

I’ve been thinking and dreaming about freedom–a lot. It feels as if everything in my life–my prayer, my attitudes, my reflections, my activities, my understanding, and my memories–are all moving toward “Freedom.” God has given all of us freedom from the bondage of sin and freedom for growing His Kingdom. But it’s the kind of gift that will not grow unless it’s used–it’s meant to be shared! I’m just beginning to realize how important using our freedom is to growing His Kingdom on earth.

Celebrating Freedom & Independence

July 4th is Independence Day in the US. On July 4th, Americans celebrate the day our founders signed the Declaration of Independence, heralding the country’s new status as a self-governing nation free from external “tyranny and oppression.”

Independence Day, since 1941, is also a major national holiday, celebrated with parades, festivals, food, and fireworks. For most Americans, including ironically some Native American tribes, celebrating independence has become a sacred national tradition. Freedom and Independence are metaphors for who we are as a culture and as a nation.