Tip of My Iceberg

photo courtesy of Kristina V on Unsplash

For many, Memorial Day is the official beginning of summer. Schools are letting out in waves of time, parents are bracing for the summer, and the barbecue season is formally fired up.

Freedom is defined differently depending on what is expected over the next two and a half months.

For young kids, not having to go to school can mean days of playing outside, swimming, and no homework. Or it could mean sadness for those who love seeing their friends everyday and enjoy the challenge of learning.

For older students, freedom could mean sleeping in late, staying up later, playing video games to their heart’s content, and rejoicing over not having homework. Or, for those who have summer jobs, the work routine replaces the school routine with little sense of summer privilege.

For parents–especially the stay-at-home folks–the challenge is to keep the young ones occupied without losing their cool.

Freedom is so much more than ease of situation or a lessening of responsibility.

Memorial Day is a celebration of all those brave souls who sacrificed their lives for us, to honor those who selflessly fought on our behalf that we may have the privileges of choice and possibility that we have today.

Not everyone is so lucky.

photo courtesy of Zulmaury Saaved on Unsplash

Honor and freedom are two values often overlooked today when a general focus is on developing a following, creating an image that is respected and enjoyed, and feeling free to share whatever crosses our minds, no matter who it impacts or how.

Honor and freedom are what drove those who sacrificed themselves to build a world worth living in. A world where people could choose to work for what they desired and not feel limited by circumstances they can’t control.

It’s a work in progress. Not everyone has the same degree of honor and freedom.

It’s fascinating that we all long for freedom of some kind. Freedom from loss or pain, from labors too heavy to continue to bear, from injustice, from wrongful accusations. We long for the privilege to be all that we can be.

This has been the longing since the beginning of time, when Adam and Eve chose to disobey God and lost the gift of living in Eden. We each long for our own Eden outpost, a place where we feel fully known, seen, and valued.

Jesus knows that. He came to give us a new freedom that we can’t find in the world.

“In Him (Jesus) and through faith in Him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.” Ephesians 3:12

Approaching God with freedom and confidence, knowing He will listen and cares about what we have to say–that’s a privilege He gives those who believe in Jesus. It’s a freedom that grows and develops us in ways we can’t imagine.

Freedom to be the best person we can be.

Isn’t that worthy of heart focus and mindful consideration?

“And you will know the truth (Jesus), and the truth will set you free.” John 8:32