Freedom

I am passionate about preserving freedom. To me, this is an eternal principle and an eternal battle. Before we came here, there was a battle of ideas over whether man should follow God's plan and have the freedom to choose how he would live his life or whether the adversary's plan was better- forcing man to do the right thing. If you sided with the adversary, you forfeited your right to come here to this earth because this earth is about man learning and progressing, and the adversary's plan did not allow for that. But, the adversary has not given up the fight to convince men that his plan was better. Communism, socialism, marxism, fascism and any form of legislation along the road to these forms of government, are all a variation on the adversary's plan of governing God's children. They all sound appealing initially. We want to help take care of the needs of others. Why not have a myriad of social programs implemented through the government to provide for everyone's needs? It is the right thing to do, isn't it? Why not have the government force private institutions to play fair with strong governemnt regulation? Or better yet, why not have the government take over the businesses that affect the majority of the people- the banks, utilities, mail delivery, retirement investment, the car industry, healthcare and insurance, etc. - then we'll know everyone will be treated fairly and we won't have to worry about those greedy business men who are just out to make a profit, right? WRONG! Not that there aren't some greedy businessmen out there, but what was true in the pre-existence is still true today: It is only in the choosing to do what is right that we become who God wants us to become. When we are forced to do what is right, we become resentful and bitter. We are robbed of the inner change that takes place when we choose to do what is right out of love for God and our fellow men- not out of fear of government fines or jail time. The biggest danger of a government that tries to take care of all of the needs of its people is that the people look to the government instead of to their God when they are in need. God allows us to go through difficult things in life to draw us to Him and allow Him the opportunity to teach us and help us become who we have the potential to become through overcoming those trials. If instead of falling to our knees in prayer when we are faced with trials, we turn to the government to solve our problems for us- we will miss the whole purpose for our sojourn here on earth. And that fact is not lost on the adversary, which is why we see so many governments throughout history imposing themselves on their people. The founding fathers were inspired to create a Constitution for this nation that gave man the opportunity, for the first time, to exercise their God- given rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. And look at the progress that has taken place in the world since man was made free. No other nation has seen the progress that we have and there is a reason. But, if we adopt the failed government policies of other nations, that progress will slow and our progress as individuals will be stifled. It is worth risking that some will choose to be selfish in order to allow everyone the opportunity to choose to be selfless on their own. Americans are the most giving people on the planet. Even during trying economic times, we give more than any other nation on earth in charitable contributions. We can use our money more effectively to help those around us than the government can. Our churches and our communities should be the ones taking care of those in need by choice- not the government who is too detached from the problem to be effective in doling out a solution, and whose motivation is generally rooted in gaining more power and money for themselves. So, give us back our money, close down your fraud laden social programs, and watch with wonder at what we the people can do when we are free to do it!