July 8, 2026

Viewing all things through the lens of the True and the beautiful!

The True

Why Freedom?

“Give me liberty or give me death!”

The emotional and emphatic declaration was the punctuation point on a speech given by Patrick Henry on March 20, 1775, as the Second Virginia Convention gathered to select delegates for the Continental Congress. It is likely you heard this famous phrase uttered at some point in recent weeks leading up to the 250^th anniversary of America’s founding. It is one of the most well-known articulations of the belief that life must be infused with freedom if it is to have value. Consider the slightly expanded context of Henry’s closing lines:

“Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!”

Henry’s speech is viewed as a pivotal moment—perhaps the pivotal moment—in the Convention’s ultimate decision to establish a committee that would send delegates to the Continental Congress. Henry chaired the committee, and Virginia’s delegates to the Continental Congress included George Washington and Thomas Jefferson.

Today, the idea that liberty is worth risking death is almost universally accepted in much of the world. But why? What is it about freedom—and the closely intertwined idea of independence—that engenders such passion and even disregard for personal safety to attain it?

In short, why freedom?

The pages of scripture—Galatians 5 particularly—reveal a two-part answer worth considering today.

First, freedom is worth prioritizing because you were created and designed to be free! Galatians 5:1 says, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”

The freedom that Jesus has for you is not only worth risking your life for but was in fact worth Jesus giving His life for! Jesus loves you so much that He gave His life in order for you to be free (Jn. 3:16).

Next, freedom is not an end unto itself. Far from it! Galatians 5:13 tells you precisely why you have been granted freedom: “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.”

Your freedom was worth everything to Jesus. But your freedom is not simply for you. It is meant to be spent and poured out for others. It is meant to be used in the same way Jesus used and spent His freedom for you.

Our first headline story this week in about the celebration of America’s 250^th birthday. America’s story—both triumph and struggle—cannot be accurately told without including the central tenant of liberty. Both America’s founding and its continued thriving hinge on the belief that individual freedom is necessary for the benefit of the larger collective. It is a belief that has yielded astounding fruit and tremendous prosperity.

It is a result that should be unsurprising to you as a Jesus follower, because you were created for freedom, and you are to use that freedom in service to others.

Why freedom? Because your liberty was worth death to Jesus!

U.S.

America 250

The United States of America is officially 250 years old. Saturday marked the quarter millennium—or semiquincentennial—of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Americans celebrated across the country but record high temperatures and volatile weather over large portions of the eastern half of the nation disrupted and delayed many of the celebrations. In Washington, DC, the flagship celebration on the National Mall was delayed and the area evacuated as a strong thunderstorm rolled through shortly before the scheduled start time. The show went on later in the evening and ran until well after midnight.

More the 30 people are dead (29 in New Jersey alone) as a result of the intense heat, which follows the loss of more than 1,300 lives in Europe due to last week’s record high temperatures.

Analysis and eternal perspective: America is still a young nation relatively speaking, but there is no denying the world-changing impact of its founding. The two-and-a-half centuries since the Founders met in Philadelphia to formally throw off the governance of the Brits have produced stratospheric strides forward in human innovation and flourishing.

Many observers attribute this rapid rise to the unique American idea of individual liberty and opportunity. The strength of America collectively has been and continues to be found largely in liberties granted to every individual American. This has incentivized generation after generation to leave both their children and their country better than they found it. The byproduct is a world superpower and the most advanced and prosperous civilization the world has ever known!

Even so, the experiment that is America’s democratic republic is still in its adolescence at most, and it falls to modern day Americans to determine what type of country will be left to the next generation.

If you are a Jesus follower in America, you have a multi-faceted charge to walk out, but one largely built around two main duties: 1) pointing mankind to an eternal Kingdom (Col. 3:2), and 2) investing in the flourishing of your current home (Jer. 29:4-7).

These two mandates may seem contradictory, but are in fact very much intertwined and complimentary. Your association with an eternal home gives you a freedom to live with open hands toward your neighbor and your community. It gives you the internal framework necessary to prioritize the wellbeing of those around you over yourself, and it gives to your nation the secret sauce necessary to flourish.

Sports

From 48 to 8

Forty-eight national teams have been reduced to just eight as the second knockout round of the World Cup is now concluded. The three host countries (Canada, Mexico, and the U.S.) all lost in the round of 16, and quarterfinal play begins on Thursday.

There was controversy in the leadup to the U.S./Belgium game (which Belgium ultimately won 4-1) surrounding the eligibility of American striker Folarin Balogun, who was given a controversial red card in the first knockout round and therefore automatically suspended for the next game. Balogun was reinstated, however, after U.S. President Donald Trump called the president of FIFA and asked for a review of the suspension. Ultimately, Balogun was allowed to play, but Belgium prevailed and advanced.

Analysis and eternal perspective: World Cup fever has swept the world, and that certainly includes the United States, which is co-hosting the event for the first time since 1994. While the elimination of the host countries will certainly diminish the local rooting interests, the remaining two weeks of the tournament are still expected to draw large crowds and significant attention.

We have together as The Equipped community been considering how to welcome the nations of the world in a way that makes disciples of Jesus Christ, and that should continue to be our focus.

Sporting events—especially major ones like the World Cup—often stir up intense emotions. While this has the potential to accentuate conflict, it also presents an opportunity for Jesus followers to demonstrate “peculiar” love for both neighbor and sporting adversary (1 Pet. 2:9). As the World Cup moves closer to completion, take a moment today to consider how it can be a catalyst for your participation in the Great Commission!

U.S.

Embattled in Maine

Graham Platner, the Democrat nominee for U.S. Senate in Maine, is considering withdrawing from the race after additional allegations of sexual misconduct. Platner denies the specific accusations but was already plagued with numerous allegations and has acknowledged shortcomings in previous relationships. If he chooses to withdraw by July 13, Democrats will select a new nominee to replace him on November’s ballot. The Maine seat is considered pivotal in the larger nationwide race to control the U.S. Senate.

Analysis and eternal perspective: Scandal and politics seem at times to be ubiquitous. As a Jesus follower endeavoring to invest in the welfare of your community, your city, and your nation, it can be a discouraging reality.

Remember, however, that yours is a story of rescue and redemption from scandal! Your sin once threatened to condemn you to an eternal separation from your Creator and Savior, but the astounding—and even scandalous—love of your God wiped away your sentence and put in its place the gift of eternal life!

In light of this undeserved but unqualified gift, you have the ability to inject eternally redemptive optimism into a story like this one. The core of that optimism is not rooted in any candidate, nominee, or elected official, but rather in the truth that each of us is a sinner in need of a Savior, and that Savior has already come!

Regardless of who ultimately prevails in Maine or which party controls the U.S. Senate, your God is on the throne, and He has given you work to do!

“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Lk. 19:10).

The Beautiful

Relentless Patience

Our youngest daughter, Hope, recently talked her way into possession of three kittens for her birthday. But there was a catch . . . the kittens were feral. They were not only unfamiliar with human interaction; they were hostile to it. Very hostile!

It has been a long process (one that is ongoing), but Hope has spent hours and hours simply sitting with her kittens and letting them acclimate to her. As she progressed to handling them, leather gloves were required. She has done it patiently and relentlessly, even as they do not reciprocate the love—in fact, the opposite! Every day, Hope has showed up with care and love, even when there was very little in return.

It is slowly making a difference. The trio—Leeli, Tiggy, and Phoenix—are beginning to soften. But it has taken a commitment to staying the course.

You are loved by God in this way. He has shown relentless patience in His pursuit of you and me, even when we have been hostile in return. It is a beautiful, radical, undeserved, and, perhaps above all, relentless love.

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him” (Lk. 15:20).

“I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness” (Jer. 31:3).