A Biblical Definition of Freedom

The Oxford Dictionary is wrong. It defines freedom as “the right to act, speak, or think as one wants.” But think about those words for a moment. Those words do not define freedom. Those words define selfishness.

All one has to do to recognize this etymological error is glance at the current condition of our world.  Senseless mass shootings…because someone feels like it. Children as victims of war…because one man desires to conquer a country. Me. My. Mine. Atrocities justified by “the right to act, speak, or think as one wants.”

In the United States, we would be quick to recognize those actions as infringing on other’s rights so we wouldn’t possibly defend those acts of violence in the name of freedom. Yet every day, albeit in miniscule manners, people trample on the rights of others or at least the dignity of others, using “freedom” as the justification. Ranting about the stupidity of another person—created in God’s image. Criticizing what someone else believes—without ever trying to dialogue about it.

Don’t get me wrong. I fully support freedom of speech, but I refuse to rationalize rudeness or treating another as “less than” because of philosophical or even theological differences.

Perhaps the solution can be found in applying an alternate meaning for the word freedom. A definition developed nearly 2,000 years ago in an environment similar to today’s—an era filled with political unrest, economic instability, and cultural uprisings. A definition penned by the Apostle Paul, found in Galatians 5:13:

“For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love” (Galatians 5:13 NLT).

Look at that. The Apostle Paul says freedom is not about what I want; rather, freedom is serving one another. Revolutionary.

Sometimes, when I’m trying to decide what a word “means” (finding the connotation as opposed to denotation—as in this case), I think about the opposite of the word. For example, the opposite of freedom is slavery. Slavery means I have to do something because I’m controlled by someone else. In other words, if I feel I “have to” rant about something because “I can’t help it,” that’s not freedom. That’s slavery. Scriptural freedom means you have nothing to prove—because your freedom is true and eternal. You don’t have to fight to “defend” it because the war is won. Instead, you can use your freedom to serve others, and by serving others, hopefully, they will want what you have. Freedom, not as the world knows, but freedom through Christ. 

After the fireworks have fizzled and the flags have been put away, let’s remember what true freedom is: serving one another. It’s not about doing what I want; it’s about not having to do what I want because I’m free.

I’d love to hear what you think. What’s your definition of freedom? Will you share?

https://www.glendadurano.com/blog

When God Doesn't "Answer" Your Prayer...

Have you ever been disappointed by God? You prayed for something and God didn’t answer your prayer? It was a noble prayer, a good prayer—for healing, for direction, for help. You had it all figured out. If God answered your prayer, you would live happily ever after, and God would get all the glory.

But the answer never came, and you felt confused and frustrated. You wondered, “Does God really answer prayer?”

Yes, He does, but God always answers prayer in a way that gives Him the most glory and us the most benefit. Even if we don’t see it at the time.

Sometimes, we’re so certain God should answer a prayer a certain way, when He does provide the answer unexpectedly, we don’t even see it because we’re looking elsewhere.

If God doesn’t answer our prayer by changing a circumstance, we need to know He has a purpose for it.  When my daughter went blind nearly ten years ago, I thought the only possible answer to my prayer would be a miraculous healing. But that answer never came. Instead, God used Amberle’s disability and her passion for marginalized people groups to create The Banquet Network, a non-profit organization that helped dozens of churches develop thriving disability ministries. He chose to use the circumstance for an eternal purpose rather than a temporary one.

Philippians 4: 6-7 exhorts believers to “pray about everything.” And we should. That includes praying about circumstances, but it also includes praying past them—for how God might use the hard situations in our lives to make us more like Him. To learn to trust Him day by day.

When it looks like your prayer isn’t answered, remember, God doesn’t allow one thing to happen to that He can’t use for His glory and our benefit as long as we cooperate. If God brings you to it, He’ll bring you through it. If your prayer isn’t being answered today, perhaps God has more than an answer for you. Perhaps he has Himself.

Now, it’s your turn to “hang out naked.” . What circumstance are you praying for? How can you pray past that circumstance for something more?

The Trapeze of Trust

As a kid, I loved going to the circus. I marveled at the daring performers in their death-defying acts. Walking out of the arena carrying a glow-in-the-dark toy I’d convinced my grandpa to buy for me, I’d wonder, Which performer do I want to be?  Sometimes it was a rope dancer; sometimes, the lady in charge of the poodle act, but more often than not, it was the high-flying, sequin-studded female trapeze artist. The reason for my choice was obvious. It was the costume. Bedecked in jewels and beads and oozing with confidence, the lady seemed invincible. She always had two or three impossibly muscular men catching her as she flew weightlessly through mid-air, and she never missed a beat. It was like a miracle happening right before my eyes. How did she do that?

I read once that the secret to a successful trapeze performance is the flyer. When she’s in the air between the trapeze bars, if she grabs for the person who is supposed to catch her, she will fall. The trick is for the flyer to simply hold her arms up and allow herself to be caught. This requires complete trust.

While I’ve never tried my talent on the flying trapeze (Full disclosure: I’m a little scared of heights), I can see a strong application in my land-laden life and my ability (or inability) to trust God.

One of the only things we can be sure of in life is change. Change is scary because it means letting go of what’s known and heading towards the unknown. A new job, a new home, a new church. It’s like being in mid-air, between two trapezes. But that’s where trust happens. Between the bars. Mid-air. As long as we keep holding on to the old, we will never move ahead to the new. The hardest part for me, however, in any sort of “mid-air” transition is not trying to be in control. Just keeping my arms up, trusting God to catch me. He’s the One who knows what he’s doing, who knows where I need to be—not me. I just have to let him catch me.

Many people equate trust with predicatability. Or certainty. Actually, it’s quite the opposite. Trust means you don’tknow…otherwise, it’s not trust. Our God is trustworthy, and we need to learn to be more like the high flyer on the trapeze—letting go of the old and trusting God to catch us exactly where we need to be with the new.

I’m trying to learn how to trust God in this scary journey of writing. Why is it scary? Because, as I explained in one of my first blogs, I’m “hangin’ out there naked,” for all to see. To disapprove of my writing. To not read it. But this is where God has caught me, so this is where I am. I’m sure I’ll have to fly through the air a few more times in life, whether it’s in my writing journey or in some other aspect of life. And hopefully, with practice, I’ll get better with not knowing and just trusting.

What about you? Will you share in this dia-blog? How are you trying to trust God? I’d love to know, and I’d love to pray for you.

Hope Is a Choice

The last few weeks have been tough. On all of us. Looking at the news and the atrocities in the world, it would be easy to lose hope.

But we must not.

Hope is critical to life. In fact, it’s been scientifically proven!

Back in the 1950’s, Curt Richter, a researcher at Johns Hopkins University, performed a study now known as the “Drowning Rats” experiment. Richter placed several dozen rats in a bucket of water. They all drowned after only a few minutes. He repeated the experiment with another group of rats, but this time, right before the rats drowned, he picked them out of the water for a moment, dried them off, and then put them back in. The result? The rats that were momentarily rescued swam approximately 240 times longer than those who were not. The reason, Richter hypothesized, was that the second group of rats had hope.

Hmmm. If having hope can make that much difference in the life of a rat, imagine what it can do for us!

According to the Oxford English Dictionary hope is “a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.” It’s not some wishy-washy, pie-in the sky, unsubstantiated longing. Hope is a logical decision, usually based on some sort of possibility. In other words, hope is a choice. Your choice.

I find that really interesting, especially in light of 1 Corinthians 13.

This celebrated chapter closes with the well-known words, “And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13 NIV). 

Faith, hope, and love—three great virtues of the Christian life.

Think about those words for a moment and what each one means for the believer. Love is a command (John 13:34). Faith is a fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). But hope is a choice.

Do you ever have problems choosing hope? I’ve had challenges, but what ultimately got me through was the idea that I could either continue in the circumstance with hope or without hope. The choice I made wasn’t necessarily going to change the situation, but it could change me. I couldn’t control the circumstance, but I could control my response. So, I chose hope. What about you? What is it that threatens your hope and how do you make the choice to stay in hope? Share your words of wisdom.

When Failure IS an Option

The only “B” I received in high school was in art. It was devastating. So, although I loved beautiful things, I forever closed the door to creating anything visually attractive of my own. Today, a lifetime away from high school, when my home-builder husband asks me to choose color combinations or tile patterns, I emphatically reply, “No, I’m not good at that.” Because someone told me I wasn’t.

What’s even sadder than being told you’re not good at something, however, is actually believing it and allowing those negative evaluations to limit your life.

You see, I’ve always adhered to the old adage, “Anything worth doing is worth doing well.” So if, after an initial attempt, I considered myself “not good” at something, I didn’t try it anymore. Athletics. Math. Dancing.

I figured no one could be good at everything, so I “stayed in my lane” doing things I was proficient at.  Maybe it was pride that stopped me from trying activities outside my “natural ability” or maybe it was discouragement. I don’t know.

What I do know, however, is that for over fifty years, I wanted to do art even though I wasn’t good at it. And I never did. Until recently--when I gave myself permission to ignore that old adage about “doing all things well” and allowed myself to be mediocre.

When my husband and I visited Italy last month, I found myself in awe of the local artists filling Florence’s main square. Each one was creating his own version of whatever he thought was beautiful, from bright orange poppy-covered fields to personal renditions of David. Something came over me and without thinking, I said to my husband, “I want to sketch.” I plopped down on a bench facing the huge cathedral and took out a pad and pencil. While Dee continued to peruse the local artists’ works, I sketched the scene for about thirty minutes.

Brunelleschi would have been appalled at my drawing of his Duomo because, in terms of art, it was minimal. But in terms of the joy I experienced, it was a masterpiece.

The topic of mediocrity, the idea of failure, is a tough one for me. Colossians 3:23 is one of my key verses in life: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

While I completely agree with that scripture, I wonder how it applies when you’re new at something…or when you’re really not that good at something in spite of your efforts? Is it possible to work at something with your heart and still not have a very strong result? Does that mean we shouldn’t do it all?

A case in point: I know a lot of people who don’t sing in worship because they’ve been told they don’t sing well, so they never fully experience that joy of praising God through music. I know others who are just as lacking, but they sing loud and long and produce what can best be described as a “joyful noise unto the Lord.” Personally, I don’t think God cares about the result nearly as much as he cares about the heart.

So, I do believe in excellence, but I’m also starting to see that “failure” can be an option. Because if you learn something or if you enjoy what you’re doing, it’s really not failure, is it?.

Visual art may not be my strength, but I don’t think that means I can’t enjoy it or shouldn’t do it. Even if it’s mediocre. For now or for always.

That’s what I think. Now, it’s your turn…

What haven’t you done because you’re not good at it? Gourmet cooking? Writing? Playing pickleball? Maybe you’ve become frustrated with your unsuccessful efforts to memorize scripture, develop a healthy habit, or start an exercise regimen. You have to start somewhere. Mediocrity is a good place to do that and today is a good time. Will you share something that you’re willing to try, even if it is mediocre?

Here and Now

4,108 weeks.

That’s the average life expectancy of an adult living in the United States. It doesn’t sound very long, does it? It certainly sounds less than its 79-year equivalent. But, if you’re average, and I’m not saying you are—most of my friends are far above average—you can expect to walk this planet for a little over 4,000 weeks. 

Seeing life in terms of weeks rather than years has made me think about how I can use my time more effectively and efficiently. I’m not a big TV binger or social media scroller, so I don’t feel like I waste my time that way, but what I have realized is I spend a huge percentage of my time thinking about the past or planning the future instead of living in the present. And before I know it, now is gone.

If you’re like me and you worry about the forthcoming “what ifs” in life (most of which never happen) or brood over the former “if onlys” (which you can’t do anything about anyway), I invite you to join me in a little experiment. As much as possible, stay present—just for today. If you find your thoughts wandering or worrying, stop and come back to where you are, at the crossroads of here and now.

Scripture seems to support the idea of staying in the present. You’ll find several examples in the Bible, but my favorite is in Exodus 3:14 when God introduces Himself to Moses. Moses sees the burning bush and asks God His name. God replies, “I AM.” Not I was or I will be (although He’s that too), but “I AM.” 

God is always in the here and now, and we should be, too.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying we should never plan for the future or learn from the mistakes of the past. We just need to spend the majority of our time where it matters most, when we can actually do something with it. We can’t change the past or foreseethe future, but we can live right now. So, that’s what I want to encourage you to do this week. Stay present with people you love.

Now (yes, right now), it’s your turn. Since this a dia-blog and not just a one-way blog, I invite you to respond to one of these questions so we can “hang out naked.” Nothing to hide. No judgment. Go on, answer a question, and put the social BACK in social media. 

Let’s dia-blog:

If you had two days left on earth, how would you spend them? What is one thing you want to do before you die? What’s your biggest time-waster? How do you stop yourself from worrying? 

Be Aware

My body usually wakes me up a few minutes before sunrise. I enjoy watching the sun appear over the Sandia Mountains and the desert landscape come to life as I prepare for the day..

But lately, I’ve found myself judging the sunrise. Not aloud. Just in my head, saying things like:

Yesterday’s was prettier..

If there were clouds, it would be better.

Is it picture-worthy?

Harmless, right? I mean, after all, everyone’s entitled to an opinion.

NOT.

Stunning sunrises, spectacular sunsets, blue skies, swirling snowflakes, towering mountains, roaring rivers, colorful hummingbirds, fragrant flowers…God’s creation shouts His love to us. But too often, we plug our ears and cover our eyes with pride, distraction, or busyness. Knowingly or unknowingly, we fail to experience what we need most: God’s continuing message of love, initiated in creation, assured through Christ’s cruxifixction and resurrection, and confirmed each and every day.

His love is there, but we’re unaware.

We’re like a television set that is turned off. Thousands of messages flood the airwaves, but until we turn on the technology and tune in to the right channel, we won’t receive a thing.

So, take a moment. Turn on. Tune in. Open your senses to see, hear, feel, taste, and touch God. More than anything, He wants you to know He loves you.

He is there. Be aware.