Dangerous Freedom
9:43 PM
I just got out of Theater 8 in Springfield Illinois. I saw “Catching Fire”, the second movie in the Hunger Games series. I typically do not fall victim to the “cultish” movie trends and you wouldn’t dare see me on opening night. But I figured a week after was enough to differentiate me from the fan girls in matching t-shirts. For the 2 1/2 hours of the film, I sat in my seat and watched with disappointment at fictional human slaughter, and then was filled with hope when districts finally realized their oppression and gained the courage to do something about it. If you have not seen it, I am not sure if this is a plug or not but let me tell you where my head is at. If you haven’t seen it, I apologize because you might be slightly confused, but try to stay with me.
I walked out of the theater, with an unsettling feeling that we know the same injustice, we live in it. We are the members of District 12, we are subject to the same starvation of the soul, and though we have received a hope, we continue to live in the death of our society. How long will we live in this dying land? Have we forgotten that the Lord has set us free? I have.
There is a Thomas Jefferson quote spray painted on the side of a building in Brooklyn. During my time there, I came across it and the words have stuck with me ever since, “I prefer dangerous freedom over peaceful slavery”.
When I think of Katniss, and her character development, I think of Esther. Esther was a regular woman who stopped a genocide, she set people free. As a woman, I’m constantly searching for Esther figures to believe in. I am looking for a Katniss, who sacrifices in the face of a revolution and delivers a hope that brings life back to the deserted veins of society. And I have been convicted as of late, to stop looking for these women, and to start becoming them. We’re told to “Stand firm and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1). Yet so many times, I am a slave to things. I am a slave to my responsibilities, I am a slave to people’s expectations of me, I am a slave to my own email. But today, I am starting a revolution against my own bondage.
What are you a slave to?
I am asking that you, whoever you are, that you declare a revolution. The Lord created us for freedom, in him there is freedom (2 Corinthians 3:7) and not a single thing in this world has enough power to bind you if you surrender it to Christ. I am telling you that you have the power to be revolutionary.You don’t need braided hair, or flaming outfits, you don’t need mocking jay pins or a microphone. Here is your stage, this moment is your opportunity. If you’re in for freedom, simply raise your three fingers up and declare that you will no longer be confined to the things that hold you back from experiencing this unhindered love. It might be dangerous, but it sure beats slavery. Do not forget, you are revolutionary.
You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself." Galatians 5:13-14
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