It’s the first week of December and the holiday feels are in full swing! Christmas time is a season of giving and joy, a season of hustle and bustle, a season of tradition, and a season to celebrate our savior. The usual sentimental topics have been on my mind, but something different is pushing it’s presence now. Freedom. The word usually has an Independence day connotation to it, but with every Christmas festivity so far this year, the blessing of freedom has stood out to me more than ever.
This past October in general conference we were challenged to read the whole Book of Mormon by the end of the year. I accepted this challenge and am currently reading about Captain Moroni in the book of Alma. Captain Moroni was one of the (if not THE) most powerful army leaders in the scriptures. He was a man of God who dedicated his whole life to fighting for freedom. Freedom and peace for his family and his people. Reading about Moroni’s passion for freedom really resonated with me. While pondering Moroni’s crusade, a light bulb went off. I strung together SO MANY occurrences in the past week of my life when the gift of freedom was thought of, talked about, or prevalent.
Recently, my sister who is a student at BYU, sent a survey to our family to fill out, as part of a project she was doing in her motivational psychology class. The questions in the survey had to do with what motivated us. I love psychology and over-analyzing why we do what we do, so I gave the questions a lot of thought. I realized that one very motivating factor in my life is freedom. There are other reasons for why I do the following, but here are some examples of why/how freedom motivates me: I’m fine living by a tight budget now in hopes that it will lead to more freedom with money later. I exercise so that I can have a healthy body and have freedom from physical limitations (as much as is in my control). I obey the law, work through confrontations, try to be a good mom, etc. because lacking in any of those areas could lead to less freedom in the future. I love being out in the wild because it just feels more free. (I said it before, but I want to make it clear, freedom isn’t my ONLY motivating factor for all these things!) I am very much a selfish “I want to do what I want to do when I want to do it” type of person. I understand that freedom comes after sacrifice not only by me, but sacrifice from others as well. Freedom is a product of sacrifice.
I recently came across a common December question: “what’s one of the best gifts you’ve ever received?” Without having to think hard about it, I thought of a “Willow Tree” figurine Gavin’s grandma gave me for Christmas two years ago. Gavin’s grandma has quite a few grand daughters, so choosing an individual gift for each person can be quite the task. Grandma understandably made our gifts generic by getting each grand daughter a willow tree figure. However, she was able to make the gifts personal and sentimental by choosing a different figurine for each grand daughter, based on which figure she thought was most appropriate for each particular granddaughter. She chose them all perfectly. Each character was so fitting for the girl who received it. She gave me the angel of freedom. Not only is it a beautiful decoration, but I loved that she made her gifts personal. I was flattered that she saw the value of freedom in me.
Saturday morning I was at a Christmas themed breakfast for the women at my church. It was a fun and light-hearted event, and ended with our bishop saying a few words. He briefly talked about visiting Cuba with his wife and learning that the people there needed to celebrate Christmas in secret, if they even celebrated at all. He said he is grateful that we live in a country where we are free to celebrate according to our beliefs. I too, am grateful for that.
Like many members of my church, I am trying to #lighttheworld this December by completing a calendar of service activities as “our gift to Christ.” One activity on this week’s calendar had to do with refugees. I used Google to learn how to help refugees in my area. I found a nonprofit after-school organization for refugees that happened to be looking for volunteers this week! It was all very last minute, but I was able to attend an event with the organization tonight. The event was a community holiday celebration. There were probably over 200 people in attendance. A bookstore was there handing out bags of books. The Dallas Food Bank was there handing out bags of food. The fire department and police officers were there to ensure safety. It was a really great event. I don’t know if anyone in attendance, outside of the volunteers, was born in America or spoke English as their first language. There were student performers throughout the evening: choir, dance, band, and color guard. The color guard held up an American Flag as the crowd recited the pledge of allegiance. It was cool seeing people who had come from all over the world, seeking freedom, come together and recite the pledge of allegiance. I know America isn’t the only “free” country, and that the country isn’t perfect, but I feel pretty blessed to live here.
This Christmas season, as we celebrate the life of Christ, I’m thinking more about how HE gave us the ultimate gift of freedom. Because of him, we have the gift of agency, or freedom to choose. Because of his atonement, we can be free from sin. Because of his crucifixion and resurrection, we can be free from eternal death.
Between reading Moroni, acknowledging my favorite Christmas gift, answering questions for my sister’s homework, attending events, and celebrating Christ (that’s a lot in such a short period of time!), the message of freedom has hit me hard recently. Realizing how important freedom is to me has given me a whole new appreciation for those who have sacrificed so that I can experience it. I’m especially grateful for the sacrifice made by our Savior, Jesus Christ, and that “freedom” is one of the many gifts He has given us.
Merry Christmas.
