We Declare...(Part III)

In the Declaration of Independence, our forefathers declared, "....that (men) are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

My previous two posts contain my thoughts on our right to life and liberty. As my fingers typed, the wisdom of our country's founders became more apparent. I've come to recognize that without God as our country's foundation, this "land of the free, home of the brave," is going to crumble. And as we look around us, it is.....

God gives life. No one else has been proven to do so. God gave us freedom. Freedom to love and glorify Him for His abundant goodness. He has provided for the seen and the unseen circumstances we find ourselves in. We were created to magnify His existence....to testify to His majesty and power. When we fell into sin, He provided our rescue. Yes, God only wants the best for us. He has given us the right to the pursuit of happiness.

We each desire happiness but "to the colonists, happiness was not equated with hedonism, it did not have to do with a person's emotional state. For them, happiness was the freedom to use their time, talent, and resources to live a life that they believed would bring them the most satisfaction, and would benefit their family, friends, fellow man, and future generations the most." (unknown source) They would be free to pursue the purpose God created them for, that which gives life meaning.

To the person who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness.. Ecc. 2:26
 

Slowly over the generations God has been removed from the public sector. Just as darkness is the absence of light, evil is simply the absence of God. When God is taken out, evil steps in. Man desires that which is God's (control). We have witnessed moral decline all around us. Our God-given rights seem to be eroding around us. The value of life has diminished, our freedom (in Christ) is mocked and ridiculed, and our pursuit of happiness is being hindered by promoting "governmental care."

I end my post with this thought: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are inalienable rights; life is for God to give and take away, no one can take away the freedom Christ gave us, and God's purpose and plan will go forth. He is still in control and always will be. In Christ lies our happiness. In a world that is full of deceit and turmoil, His light will continue to shine, for man cannot take away those gifts God has given us. May we hold our heads high and continue to defend that which our forefather's instituted.

I am thankful for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

We Declare....(Part II)

In the Declaration of Independence, our forefathers declared, "....that (men) are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

These guys (Duck Dynasty) have something to say!!

 
In my last post (We Declare...Part I) I related to that wonderful gift called life given to us by our Creator. Today I am jotting my thoughts on the right of liberty. In this series of posts, I Declare, I am interchanging the terms gifts and rights. I believe our forefathers did not want to withhold (or feel it was not correct in doing so) those gifts that God has bestowed on His children. We have the "right" to them.

When we read that we are endowed with "the right to liberty", we think of a free society, not being controlled by the government. Yes, I do believe our forefathers intended this, but this freedom comes from a greater root. God has given us the gift of freedom through His Son, Jesus Christ. We are each born sinful. (Psalm 51:5) Sin enslaves a person in that there is no good found in him. (Romans 3:12) Sin is opposition to our Creator, the God who gave us life. We inherited it from Adam (the first man to walk this earth) and continue in it through our disobedience. But God sent His Son to die on the cross to FREE us from the yolk of slavery. We are now free to pursue all that God has for us.

Sin blinded us from God's beauty, it oppressed us with guilt. Sin gave our world decay, and made man want to rise up and be better than his neighbor. Sin instilled hate, crime, war, and poverty. Sin says I am better than God, I am better than you. It is a horrible disease that infects all.

We will always live in this sinful world, but those of us who believe God has rescued us, are promised a perfect home upon death, and we are promised to have life here on earth that is abundant and full of joy! That is freedom! We are free from the chains of sin (although since there are those still in this world that embrace sin, it will always be a sinful world), free to look to God and enjoy all He has for us....to embrace the purpose He created us for.

Love = Freedom. God loved His children so much that He sent His Son to die for them all. (John 3:16) We are now free to love, not hate. Free to look to our neighbor and not one-up him, but help him. Free to give to others out of the goodness God has given us, not steal from others. Free to put our pride aside and know that God created each of us equal and we are on this journey together. Free to lay our head on the pillow each evening knowing it is not I that is in control but our Heavenly Father. Freedom is Peace! We now operate on the law of Love, not the Law of Slavery (to sin).

Our forefathers knew that the Law of Love would build a greater country than the Law of Slavery (Authoritarian). Simply, when we are governed by our Creator, we will live a quiet and peaceable life......looking out for one another. When man lives to please himself, tyranny (read how this takes place here) will eventually take over.

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:13-14

I have learned our freedom is a great gift. May we defend it always.

We Declare .... (Part I)

In the Declaration of Independence, our forefathers declared, "....that (men) are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

Unalienable adj. Not to be separated, given away, or taken away. Those that signed that document meant with all of their being that God has bestowed these rights to us. I am humbled. Our forefathers spent a great deal of time and thought in drafting the documents that would guide our country's future. Where we are at present in relation to what they envisioned is a topic for another post.  Today, I am considering our right to life.

Life is precious, precious because man cannot produce it. We have never been able to create life on our own. Life is given and sustained by God Almighty, our Creator. I often think of the story below when man thinks they can one-up God.☺

One day a group of scientists got together and decided that man had come a long way and no longer needed God. So they picked one scientist to go and tell Him that they were done with Him. The scientist walked up to God and said, "God, we've decided that we no longer need you. We're to the point that we can clone people and do many miraculous things, so why don't you just go on and get lost." God listened very patiently and kindly to the man and after the scientist was done talking, God said, "Very well, how about this, let's say we have a man making contest." To which the scientist replied, "OK, great!" But God added, "Now, we're going to do this just like I did back in the old days with Adam." The scientist said, "Sure, no problem" and bent down and grabbed himself a handful of dirt. God just looked at him and said, "No, no, no. You go get your own dirt!"

God created life with no raw materials. He simply spoke it into existence. (Genesis 1-2) There are no words to comprehend his majestic power.

He....spoke....

....and you and I came into being.

We have a right to life simply because He granted it.  Our lives aren't valuable because of what we do, how we look, what material goods we attain, our status, they are only valuable because of Who He Is.

God creates scientists, landscapers, mothers, fathers, accountants, programmers, secretaries, football players, child-care workers, teachers, pastors, students, salesmen, stock clerks, veterinarians.....and the list goes on. Our forefathers knew that God gives His gifts and talents to all men, for all walks of life, in all situations, for the benefit of mankind and to His glory.

When we try to control life, erase life, mess with God's design, all chaos breaks loose. For if you take away God's purposed life, you take away what God intended for good.

Life begins at conception ("A person's a person, no matter how small" ~Dr. Suess) and earthly life ends at our appointed time. (Psalm 139:16) Each day between conception and death is a gift, no matter what life holds. If there is breath, there is life. You are a treasure simply because you are His.

God gives life. May we defend that right for all mankind.
  
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalm 139:13-14

I have learned that life is to be treasured.

Prayer

Jesus taught us to pray, "Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name....." Those of us who have been raised in Christian homes have heard this prayer countless times. We also may have been taught to pray before meals, pray before bed, pray as we awake....it was noted deep within our being that prayer is important, a vital part of our Christian walk.

In conversing with others about prayer, inevitably the question arises, "If God knows everything, knows already what will happen tomorrow, why do we pray? We really can't change His mind, can we?"

I do believe the above is true. God does know everything, what will happen and what we need. And therein, lies our dilemma. Why pray? Really, why do I pray for someone that is sick to be healed? Why do I pray for relationships to mend? Why do I pray for protection, for my daily needs? Why pray when God already has his plan in place?

We pray for us. For you and me, for our benefit. God is God, and because He is God, we cannot begin to fathom His ways. I serve a God that is bigger than my understanding, bigger than my finite mind.

There are several passages in the Bible where it appears that man changed God's mind. It was only after prayer that God granted the request. I can't wrap my mind around that, for God's plan will go forth whether we pray or not. BUT....God's greatest desire, and His reason for creating man, was to have relationship with Him. What could be greater than a heavenly Father being able to grant His child's request? To know His children want relationship with Him and want to talk to Him? To share this walk of life now and then eternity together?

Prayer is our response to God's greatness and goodness. To his mighty power and protection. It is saying "You know what is right and good Lord, lead me on the path of righteousness." We acknowledge our dependence on our Creator, knowing we are nothing without Him. And...prayer acknowledges our trust in our Heavenly Father.

Think of a small child. Of the relationship between father and child. The child gladly gives his requests to the parent. The child exuberantly tells of his exciting day, or tearfully, his sad one. And the father will move in such a way that is the best for the child. He will rejoice in the joys and comfort the sadness. He will give abundantly for the benefit of the child. But he will also discern the childish or selfish ways and deny the child these wishes....all for the good of the child.

Prayer is powerful....powerful because it brings us into a closer relationship with our Heavenly Father. It is total dependence. I learned this lesson greatly when scheduled for brain surgery. I had many praying for me as I faced the removal of a brain tumor. A dear friend told me to imagine Jesus standing right beside me. Not once during the whole ordeal did I fear anything...and I know it was because of prayer. Not only myself, but all those around me were trusting that God was in total control and He was there beside me. I was totally at peace. 

The Lord's Prayer is found in the book of Matthew, Chapter 6. It is a beautiful prayer, one that is a guide for all our prayers. It acknowledges His holiness and our dependence on Him. We are to pray. Does it change God's mind? We will never know the answer to that question. But it does move His heart. God talks to us through His Word, we talk to Him through prayer....relationship. May you be blessed in talking to your heavenly Father. ♥ 

For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer. I Peter 3:12

I have learned the power of prayer.