how free must you be to be free?

Exams, tests, modules quizzes, pathetic circadian rhythm; its de-rigueur for the kind of life i'm living presently. all so i can tell myself i mattered, probably put a smile on a little kids face or that of their mother what could be better?
I was in church on Sunday and the question of freedom arose in the course of the sermon and two responses caught my attention the first person who i think is a cynic in the making said in a rather heartfelt way that freedom as a state, was impossible to attain as long as responsibilities existed and one had several social conventions to conform to. the other person said freedom was achievable and claimed to have achieved it as it comprised the liberty to do all that one wanted what is most significant about these two definitions or outlooks of freedom is that the people that gave them are essentially in the same age bracket and economic status so it bring into discussion that freedom, is as it appears or as a friend of mine says; freedom is as freedom does.
 It now calls into question what exactly is freedom? what does one do so as to be described as free? to a slave freedom is the  liberty to determine what he does each day, a caged bird defines it as the breaking of the bars and the ability to find out how far the sky goes, to a teenager it is the transfer of prerogative from his parents to him/her self and the free rein to choose what he would do, basically to live a life bereft of "interference", control, restrictions and advice. for some others it could mean the ability to do something they have always wanted to do for example to a housewife it could mean being able to just take a long overdue sleep or just be rid of all the responsibility that she has for one day. it really depends on who is speaking.
Be that as it may the thread that runs through all of these definitions is the word or concept choice; the ability to see the options available to one, and the levity to go after that which enables the person to achieve his/her aims or dreams.
 If its as simple as choice,  why are the views so different? the answer is simple; we all want different things but we all want to able to say this is what i want and i have taken it.
In my opinion freedom is the liberty to pursue ones aims within his available means and maximizing what means he has within sensible restrictions and to understand the responsibilities that come with it. "sensible" is in it self ambiguous enough to elicit another argument of relativity. but i absolutely believe that freedom as an aim cannot be fully appreciated within certain restrictions.

A hero is someone who understands the responsibility that comes with his freedom.
Bob Dylan

 freedom without any restrictions is slavery of another sort one more insidious that other forms of slavery, as it places the "freed" person in a bondage to  the things he wants or thinks he wants. let me use this analogy to press home my point.
Look at these two insects the butterfly and the bee. ever wondered why despite all the flowers that the butterfly flits from it leaves nothing to enjoy apart from it beauty? the butterfly is the typical example of freedom the liberty to pursue all pleasures a hedonistic lifestyle is if you please. essentially, the butterfly just goes about "loving" this flower and then that one, spends its night thinking of all the other flowers it expects to explore tomorrow and before it knows it, it life time is over and there is nothing to show for it except its beauty and another young butterfly. At the other end of this spectrum in the honey bee which most of us are grateful to for the gift of honey. it lives in a hive and has a rigid hierarchy each bee has a specific task  which it sticks to. you could argue that it is in a bondage of sorts but i will argue that it is not because, it has the liberty to be the best of its kind and contribute ultimately to the production of honey that most of us love. picture this; same environment, probably same flower, clearly not the same aesthetic quality, different amounts of "freedom" but at the end of the day the disparity in end product is beyond question.

As Christians what does the bible have to say about freedom or even choice, it is important to note that man was created as a being with free choice at liberty to do "all"  and have dominion over everything that God created after enjoying the freedom of choice with the restriction of the tree in the center of the garden, when the choose to push his boundaries, the lost everything although you could argue that he possessed the freedom that information or knowledge provided him with, his life wasn't particularly better. this is the bible's perspective on freedom;

Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live! 20You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him. Thisb is the key to your life. Deut 30vs 19 New Living Translation

again Jesus emphasizes the place of "restrictions" ;

GOD'S WORD® Translation (©1995)

Place my yoke over your shoulders, and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble. Then you will find rest for yourselves

God gives us freedom, however its a unique kind that can only be found in him we can achieve all our dreams within him because he is all sufficient.

New International Version (©1984)

'For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.'

 another case in point is the prodigal son in Luke 15vs11 is parable of Jesus that poignantly elucidates that freedom isn't really all that it is made out to be. from all of the above, the question of the need to be free goes without saying, but when we ask how much freedom do we really need is one that brings out all sorts of questions and opinions. these are essentially my opinion's based on my search of the scriptures and personal experience. let me know what you think on the subject of freedom.
have a nice week y'all.




PS.don't forget to let me know what you think i 'll really appreciate it.

excerpts on healing

Another week has passed (two to be exact) the last spent downing all the flu meds i could get my hands on.(it was downright scary truth be told). well we are in another week and 'm feeling much better i can look at the screen of my laptop without feeling the need to down panadol tablets at one point my friend said i actually looked stoned (like she knows what a stoned person looks like). i was thinking on the subject of healing when i stumbled on what i will show you in the next few paragraphs

In her book, A Place of Healing, Joni Eareckson Tada based on her extensive personal study and personal experience provides the answers to several questions frequently asked by those who suffer physical illness.  Does God still heal people miraculously today?  If so, does He want to heal all or just some?  And what am I to think if my prayers for healing go unanswered? She draws four conclusions for us to ponder.

 First, Jesus is just as concerned about our health and healing today as He was when He walked this earth.  She quotes Henry Frost who wrote the following. Christ is the eternal Son of God, and He is in His divine attributes the same yesterday and today and forever (Hebrews 13:8).  If therefore He loved in the days of His flesh, He loves now; if He cared then, He cares now; if He healed then, He heals now.  It does not necessarily follow that He will do now all that He did then, or that He will do what He does now in the same way as He did then, for His purposes in some things are different at present from what they were in the past.  Nevertheless, Christ is changeless in character, and we may be sure that He is infinitely interested in us and concerned about us.

 Second, yes, we are healed by His wounds—but not necessarily immediately.  All life, all healing, and all atonement flow from that fountain who is our Lord Jesus Christ.  Where else would it come from?  Joni quotes theologian Richard Mayhue: “Isaiah 53 primarily deals with the spiritual being of man.  Its major emphasis is on sin, not sickness.  It focuses on the moral cause of sickness, which is sin, and not on the immediate removal of one of sin’s results—sickness.”  We should be quick to add that not every sickness is the result of specific personal sin of the one afflicted.

 Third, our Lord Jesus has varied purposes of His own.  In His mercy and in His purposes He will heal immediately.  But at other times His healing will go on at a deeper level in the innermost parts of our being and not be fully realized in our bodies until we step into our new bodies upon our arrival in our Father’s house.  Yes, He has redeemed those who believe in Christ, but He is also continuing that redemptive process in our lives right up until we draw our last breath.  

When the resurrected Christ told Peter how he was going to die to glorify the Lord, Peter looked over his shoulder at John and said, “Lord, what about him?”  Jesus patiently replied, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?  You must follow me?”(John 21:22)  In other words, Jesus has His own purpose for each of us.  And what-ever situation He gives us in life, we are to follow Him in faith and trust.

God has different purposes for His own, and He shows Himself strong and gains glory in different ways throughout each of our life-times.  And if He allows suffering in our lives, He does for very specific, very important reasons, and he does not do so lightly!

 Again she quotes Henry Frost:

Christ has many things to think of in planning for a saint; He must have in mind what is best for the individual; what is the greatest profit in respect to His testimony; what is required in his relationship to many other saints; and what is to make most for God’s present and eternal glory; and He will hold resolutely, in answering prayer, to that course which will combine in bringing the largest and most enduring good to pass.

 Fourth, as with other crucial issues, Satan will seek to push us into nonbiblical extremes on this issue of miraculous healing.  Joni writes, there is one thing that seems to be a common element in those who take extreme positions on divine healing, a lack of humility.

 She continues writing “on the one hand you have people telling God what He must do, and on the other hand you have people telling God what He can’t do.  As clay pots who are we to dictate terms to the master potter and tell Him that he Has to heal me right now?  Who are we to tell God what He can or can’t do in today’s world?  He can do as He likes.  He is God.  As He declares in the book of Isaiah, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please’ (46:10).  As Job asserts, ‘He stands alone, and who can oppose him? He does whatever he pleases’ (23:13).”

Joni concludes, “At times He is willing to heal immediately—and He will perform a miracle that modern medicine can’t begin to explain.  At other times, however—and for reasons we can’t always fathom—He is not willing to heal a particular illness, reverse the course of a disease, or cancel a particular disability.  As with the apostle Paul, who had his request for healing denied, the Lord Jesus will give an extra measure of His presence and grace instead.”  

Indeed, we may say with paul, “your grace is sufficient for us, for your strength is made perfect in our weakness.”(2 Corinthians 12:9)

So in  times of sickness and in fact anytime we particularly need the father to come through for us we can be confident that he will never leave us nor forsake us. This week however, i'm looking forward to the return of the SMURF (yeah i said it!) who I've not missed and i will be writing a couple of rather interesting exams this week if you would pray for me it wouldn't be so bad. have a wonderful week. 

HAPPY WOMENS DAY!!! to all the women and moms every where, moms are the mosdef the best.

 love you mom.