It has been a while since I posted on here. I am looking forward to hearing Ron Paul speak at Duke this evening. He speaks much of freedom. As he once said, “Freedom is new, tyranny has been around forever.” I see such a connection between freedom in this country and religious freedom. I have the privilege each year of organizing the National Day of Prayer Service for our county. We meet each year in front of the county courthouse. As our service began yesterday, I was moved by the thought of our freedom in this country. There are so many places in the world that our believing brothers and sisters cannot meet in the public square and pray in Jesus’ name. Our freedom is a precious thing.
Over the past century we have been slowly losing our freedom as individual Americans. This is not what our Foudning Fathers intended. It is comforting to know that I am first a citizen of the Kingdom of God and second, a citizen of America. If we do lose all of our freedoms in this country, I’ll be alright. But the good news is that we don’t have to lose them! Our country began with the idea of freedom for everyone. Freedom because we have all been created free. Our Constitution in this country only limits the reach of our government into our lives. If we follow it as a people, we would see more freedom that we do today!
When the government begins to trample on our freedoms, they do not let up. I have been troubled by the events surrounding the Polygamist group in Texas. What troubles me is that over 400 children have been removed from their families because of the actions of some of the parent’s in the compound. Don’t misunderstand, I firmly oppose Polygamy and Pedophilia. Those guilty in these areas should be punished. But what is troubling is that many dozen families were trying to raise their children with their family’s belief system. For the government to come in and sweep up EVERY child, have a court hearing for all 400+ in only a few hours time, and then place the 400+ children in foster homes throughout Texas is scary to say the least.
When will we get to the point where the government doesn’t like the actions of some in my denomination? When will teaching that homosexuality is sin, and adultry is sin, when will that be so unpopular that the government considers is harmful to children to learn? When will they begin to remove children from homes who are being home-schooled for religious purposes? Whereas I disagree with much of the theology of those in Texas, they at least have a right to believe what they believe. At least, they are supposed to in this country.
A Pastor's Thoughts 