Psalm 118:21-24
21 I thank you that you have answered me
and have become my salvation.
22 The stone that the builders rejected
has become the chief cornerstone.
23 This is the Lord’s doing;
it is marvelous in our eyes.
24 This is the day that the Lord has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it.
John 8:31-33
31 Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”
Galatians 5:1a
Happy Fourth of July! I picked readings for today for the holiday, and the promises of God we receive to live free. Free to worship God without fear. Free to live as God’s beloved. Free to experience the blessings God gives us. Free to enjoy the wonder of God’s creation.
For me, freedom and joy seem to go hand in hand.
A day that sums that up best for me is the day Lisa and I asked our good friends, Ingrid and Chip, to be the maid of honor and best man for our wedding.
Chip, Lisa and I drove up from Mount Pleasant (home of THE Central Michigan University) to Big Rapids, where Ingrid was going to school at the time. We planned a day of tubing down the Muskegon River. We picked up Ingrid and her car and drove to the church where Ingrid attended – they had inner tubes for people to borrow for the day.
We had a problem to solve. There were four of us, plus four tubes and two cars – a Pinto hatchback and a Chevy Chevette. Two VERY SMALL cars. How to make this work?
We needed to take the two cars, four tubes and four people to the starting point. Two people and four tubes were dropped off. Two people then drove the two cars to the end of the river and dropped off a car and returned to the starting point. We got in the tubes, floated down the river and had the most relaxing, enjoyable day.
Half way down the river, we decided to do it again.
So when we got to the end of the run, we got out of the river, and two people got in the one car, went back to the beginning of the river and picked up the second car, brought it back to the end of the river and picked up the four tubes and two people and then headed back to square one.
Oh my!
Yes, Ingrid and Chip accepted our invitation to be our maid of honor and best man. We give thanks to God for their friendship and support.
That day back in 1983 is a day I will never forget. We were free to enjoy the wonder of God’s creation with good friends and a lot of great memories.
It was a day the Lord had made, and we DID rejoice in it.
What are the days of freedom and joy that you cherish?
Thank God for them!
Let us Pray: