Set Free: Reflections on Independence.

by Donna Gibbs

(Originally published on July 6th, 2018)

This week, we had the privilege to celebrate our independence. Independence Day marks the anniversary of the birth of America, and our gift of freedom. I wonder sometimes why I was awarded the unearned privilege of being born an American. I did nothing to deserve that gift of citizenship. I consider those who struggle as a result of their unearned birthing into a third-world culture. And, I wonder why I should be so blessed to live what I perceive to be an easier life.

With that said, I don’t know of anyone, on the left or the right, that doesn’t have concern about present-day America. With each day that passes, it seems to appear a little less like the America I was born into. My children do not experience the security of a terror-free country. The America they see has conflict. Chaos. Fear. Financial instability. It’s a country that no longer respects the God that got us where we are. It’s utterly heartbreaking.

So while I celebrate the fact that I still believe I live in the greatest country on earth, I still mourn. As I celebrate Independence Day, I will pray for America, the land that I love. And, while I am incredibly grateful to have been born with this citizenship, I will also praise God that my hope is in Him, and not in America. My freedom today, and my freedom for eternity, is not based on my country. It is gifted by my God. “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by the yoke of slavery” -Galatians 5:1. (If you wrestle today with the oppression of an addiction, a debilitating depression, or an abusive marriage, or any other emotional struggle, I want to encourage you that you can have independence from that trial. You can be free. You don’t have to be a slave to an unworthy master. Remember, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free”.)

America’s freedom has never been bought by politicians. It’s been bought by the bravest people of America – those who gave their blood so that we could keep ours. We did nothing to deserve their gift. They gave it anyway. And, today, there continue to be soldiers standing in the gap for us, willing to give their lives for the good of America. I am so grateful for these heroes, and their sacrificial families!

Our hope for eternal freedom was also bought with an ultimate price. And, that freedom is an eternal citizenship that we could never have earned. It’s not that we were born into it. We made a choice to accept it, and were “born again” into that citizenship. If you don’t know Christ, and your only hope for freedom is in your country, I’d beg you to seek Him. “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). America may not always be free. But, God’s promises never fade, and freedom in Christ can be had today, and for all of eternity. For that, I am forever grateful!

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