Lately, I have been thinking a lot about what it truly means to be free.
As I have pondered the concept, I am reminded of the words of 1 Corinthians 10:23-24. No matter which translation you read, the core message is a profound challenge to how we live.
The NIV says: “‘I have the right to do anything,’ you say—but not everything is beneficial… No one should seek their own good, but the good of others.” The NLT puts it even more simply: “‘I am allowed to do anything’—but not everything is good for you.”
Everything is permissible,
but not everything is beneficial.
In our culture, we love to throw around the phrase, “It’s a free country.” But more often than not, people use that as a shield to excuse bad behavior or selfish attitudes. I’ve seen it used to excuse hate groups, mass shootings, and more, as though we aren’t put in danger by the actions of others.
As I wrote recently, brushing things off as “just the way it is” is the lazy way out and opens the door to poor decisions.
It doesn’t have to be this way.
To paraphrase Henry Adams, true freedom isn’t the absence of restraint; it’s the presence of responsibility.
We have the freedom (and responsibility) to choose generosity, kindness, empathy, love, and honesty—both as individuals and as a nation.
However, we also have the freedom to choose selfishness, cruelty, apathy, and dishonesty.
If the way I choose to live out my freedom harms someone else and strips away their peace, then they aren’t truly free. And that means I am not, either.
It is easy to look at the political gridlock and the division on our screens and feel entirely powerless while also refusing to take responsibility for what we have become. We wait for grand gestures from the top to fix our fractured culture. But leadership usually just reflects what a culture tolerates.
True change doesn’t trickle down; it wells up from the people.
That is where our small, everyday choices, made when nobody is watching, come into play. As I share in A Brighter Blueprint, the impact of our small actions can surprise us.
We have the freedom to post a scathing comment online—but is it constructive?
We have the freedom to dismiss a neighbor who thinks differently than we do—but does that build a community?
We have the freedom to look out only for ourselves—but does that serve the good of others?
Every day, we choose between the easy freedom of self-interest and the higher freedom of responsibility. Our words and actions either expand empathy or deepen apathy. We can choose to empower good or evil, not just through what we do, but through our silence and complacency. Which choice makes our country safer, more respected, more generous, and kind?
When we choose to listen instead of react, to offer grace, and to look out for one another, we actively build the world we want to live in.
Life is fleeting. We have the ultimate freedom to decide how we spend our days and what kind of legacy we leave behind. Let’s choose our words and actions wisely—and selflessly.
Even So, Joy 
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