Freedom, Oppression, and Equality

By: Lilyofthevalley2014

For the most part, we in America do not have a correct view on freedom, oppression, and equality. I would put myself in part of that bunch. I don’t know what it means to have my freedom stripped away or be oppressed by a tyrannical dictator. But I have been in the boxing ring with equality. Fighting hand to hand with it. I was confused why every punch I threw did nothing to my opponent and every blow I got to the face was a wake up call: “What am I doing here.” “Why do I want to be equal with my opponent?” Every hard blow nudged me to the edge of the mat. The wood floor was calling out my name to step off and be done. When I finally crawled weakly out of the ring I realized that I was being oppressed and my freedom was being taken from me. Who was doing this? Who was oppressing me? Could you believe that it was culture? The Media? People in my church? My family?

We have this idea that freedom only means you are trapped, unable to get loose. No freedom or rights to do what you want to do. And oppression is when someone is telling you and forcing you to do something you don’t like. When I was younger, I shook my fist at God and demanded an explanation on why He made me a girl. Boys get to have all the fun. Boys get the cool toys. Boys get to do this and do that. I gave no value to women and their role. I was a male chauvinist. I valued men’s role more than woman’s. Why? It’s not like I was taught this concept so explicitly from my parents. Nothing I learned about men’s and women’s role was overt or so profound to me. I downplayed women’s role because of the silent undercurrent of the information that I was processing.  I believed the lies. The lies that I would be ‘oppressed’ if I stayed at home. The lies that being a mother and caring for children would take my ‘freedom’ away. I wanted to be independent. I wanted to be selfish and have my dreams come true. When the Lord started opening my eyes to what He had for me as a woman my whole entire world came crashing down. TKO-Technical Knock-Out. I was down for the count and I did not get up. I stayed down and I crawled off the mat…never to step into that arena again.

Viewing women as a failure for ‘simply’ taking care of children and their husbands is a lie straight from the devil. How many women today are looked down upon for being homemakers? “Why don’t you actually help your husband and get a job?” (Paul Washer’s wife was told this–Sidebar: If you have never heard this man preach you are missing out! http://www.heartcrymissionary.com/ ) Where does our true source of freedom come from? There will always be oppression and the fight for equality, but there is one freedom–only one freedom that no one can take from you. Freedom in Christ.

There are still some those who cry out, like I did, “That’s not fair! It’s my Christian Liberty to do what I want to do. If it is not explicitly in the Bible then its Christian Liberty.” When Christ transforms our lives and our eyes are opened to pride, arrogance, selfishness, and not fulfilling the responsibilities He has placed on our shoulders, we will quickly see how far we have to go. And without Christ, we cannot get to the end. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13” Let me know if I took that verse out of context…it is taken out of context so many times.

Those blows that I got were not metaphorical. I even bragged out the bruised eyes and bruised shins. I placed myself in man’s arena and strived for ‘equality.’ I could never match up to a man. Blood, sweat, nor tears could get me there. I am a woman. I was not made a man. Did God make a mistake? Of course not. What creation can tell the creator He messed up? Women thinking they can be men (Not physically, but in essence with man’s responsibility and purpose) is a distortion of God’s intended purpose. Freedom is a privilege, not a right. Let’s start trying to focus on not being self entitled and having the world revolve around us…you…me.

Although I know that I have wasted most of my life so far, trying to become one that I simply will never even come close to, I am wrestling through how to view my life right now. Even though I have found my liberation in Christ first and a true woman second, I still have my past I have to live with. Is God sovereign? Of course. Is it His will that I sin? Of course not. Did God place me where He wanted me? Of course. Is where He placed me where He wanted me to be? Of course not. Do you see the struggle? I despise my life. I grew up training how to be a man. I have either sold, thrown away, or given all my past away almost. All the awards, accolades, pictures, things….garbage. It is all rubbish. I don’t have much left. I know where God wants me to be. I know that it was His will to create me a woman so there I have my destination. I have my map (the Bible). I have my guide (Jesus). It only goes up from here!  ^“I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are Thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. Psalm 139:14. God is good. I praise Him for saving my spiritual and physical life–for I am a distortion.

Oppression in the Police Force/Military

Women have been oppressed for a very long time. I was in the military, active duty for 5 years. Towards the end of my career I got to witness first hand a woman come forth and explain the problem that she was facing, when a commanding general came to check on his troops.

Women Feel Oppressed in Military

First I need to explain that this woman was a huge success. First of all, she was a bomb technician, that is, Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD). Highly prestigious job and very few women make it. Secondly, she was incredibly successful at her unit. She had the highest PT score, and she beat all the men at the soldier of the quarter board. I’m pretty sure it was that, might have been the soldier of the month. Anyways she was incredibly intelligent and everyone acknowledge that she was a great bomb technician. She seemed to enjoy competing with the men, showing them that she was just as strong and competent as them.

So what could be wrong? No one was holding her back, she seemed to be happy and having a successful career. But when the general asked everyone if they had any complaints, things to improve upon, it all came spilling out.
She told the general that she did not feel like a woman; that she could not be a woman in that work environment. She implied that her femininity was oppressed; womanhood was being oppressed by the masculine uniform that she had on. By the masculine job that she performed. She couldn’t be the real her.

Needless to say, that ticked everyone off. If you don’t feel like a woman, don’t feel like a beautiful and delicate flower when you are wearing man’s clothes doing a man’s job with a bunch of men all day…maybe that should be a huge indicator you shouldn’t be cross dressing. We should realize that women’s beautiful and feminine nature are being oppressed and destroyed. When we stick them in the wrong environment, and expect them to be men, we are damaging their psyche!

This is an outrage against women, this is hatred and misogyny. The military oppresses women, it does not allow them to be the women that God created them to be, beautiful and delicate. Women have to be strong and masculine, to survive in the Army.

When will the hatred of women end?

Allowing women in the military is an oppressive, unnatural and an ungodly thing. We need to get our beautiful girls out of the armed services and leave the men to do the fighting.

Pornography and Sexual Sin

Bondage of Sin

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, –Luke 4:18

Today I would like to commend to you a wonderful ministry and resource called Setting Captives Free. This website freely offers courses to help people with various sin. Originally, this course was started by Mike Cleveland to help people overcome, by God’s authoritative Word and the help of the Holy Spirit, various sexual sins, specifically that of pornography.

 

There are a lot of resources out there, mostly books and seminars. This course however, is a notch above the rest.

This is a  60 day course, with actual accountability partners who in fact do a keep you accountable, not just pray for you and wish you a good day. Though it can be a little cheesy, and not always catered to one’s personal denomination, they make sure to do a pretty good job of sticking to the Gospel of Christ. I was actually surprised at how deep they get, and how firm they are. They mean business! If you actually want to ‘put off the old man, and put on the new’ they will be their with you every step of the way. If you are struggling with sin, or you know someone who is, by God’s grace, please make use of this ministry providing free help. They even graciously offer counselors with out pay, yet God is clearly using this ministry to transform peoples lives.

Pornography and self-gratification, lust and sexual immorality are not the only things that they address; gambling, substance abuse, self-injury, and eating issues as well.  These courses too, are at no cost. No their really isn’t a catch. If you find this a resource useful, please pass it along to a brother or sister in need.

Setting Captives Free

Submitting to a Corrupt Government

                Imagine with me for a moment, living in a world where you are under a government that is most incredibly corrupt; one that cares not for its poor and oppressed. A society that hates Christians, and the very notion of Christianity. Imagine living in a nation where the vast majority of the ruling class, the ones who are in power are pagan; unconverted and ungodly men vying for power and control. Think about what it must be like, as a follower of Christ to be in the minority. Imagine living underneath an evil dictator who presents himself as God; who demands to be worshiped. Imagine being a citizen of a nation that imposes an unfair tax on its people, a place where injustice abounds, sexual immorality is rampant, and scandals occur on a regular basis.

Is this America that I am describing? Or is it ancient Rome? The same corrupt, over-taxing, abuse of authority, Roman government that the great apostle Paul told us to submit to? The Christian killing, light-on-fire, for fun kind of government; we are to submit to that?! As a matter of fact….yes. Maybe Paul doesn’t know how corrupt this government is. Or maybe he doesn’t know that we have so much worse, then all the people during the times of the Roman empire, with all the martyrs. We are an exception to the rule, we can rebel right? Maybe? I mean, it’s justified….(please note the sarcasm).

We as Christians ought to be the best citizens in this country. And yet, so often times we are not. We are so busy fighting for our supposed ‘rights’ (which we do not see very often in Scripture) that we find ourselves no longer being the ideal citizens. The idea of submission is particularly repugnant to us as Americans. We see it as inferior. We see obedience as shameful; we pride ourselves on our rebellious heritage; the Revolutionary War. When we are more concerned with our ‘rights’ and our ‘liberty’, justice and freedom, all good things, but when we are so concerned about these, that the Gospel, the great news of our Christ, becomes smaller, becomes diminished, tainted in the public view…we should grieve. My brothers, please, spend some time contemplating how we have failed to be the ideal citizens that we are called to be. How our rebellious attitudes and speech are not doing good but harm. It is true that we are not to obey when the matter is of sin. But technically guys, giving the government more money, is not a matter of sin. As much as I do not wish to, I must obey, for the sake of the obedience, for the sake of peace. More than that, for the sake of the gospel, for the sake of Christ. Remember, we are citizens of Zion first, not of America. We must show people this.