THERE ARE WORSE THINGS THAN DEATH

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Daniel 3:16–18

16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

Patrick Henry

Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!

I love these verses from Daniel and the words of Patrick Henry. Fear is something that I have struggled with all of my life. Looking back at my life I was a coward until about the age of 14. My mother drummed it into my head that you didn't have to fight to be a man. She told me that it took a bigger man to avoid a fight. This was no problem for me because I was too afraid to fight anyway. Of course, as Kenny Rogers famously put it in his song Coward Of The County, " sometimes you have to fight to be a man". At 14 I decided that I was tired of being bullied and I finally stood up for myself. It felt good. That was the only fight that I have ever been involved in. Since that time I have found that most bullies are cowards and you don't always have to fight to stand up to one. I vividly remember the humiliation and pain that I felt when I didn't stand up to bullies but I recall with pride the times that I did stand up to them. 

Some say that courage is the absence of fear but I say that courage is the ability to act in spite of your fears. I have always had a terrible fear of flying. When I joined the Air Force I asked my recruiter if I would have to fly. He said that I would be required to fly to basic training but after that I could travel by any means that I chose. Well, he lied. During my 21 year career in the Air Force I flew all over the world and crisscrossed the United States more times than I care to count. Whenever I was required to fly somehow I mustered the courage and boarded the plane in spite of my fears. After all of these years I am still afraid to fly and I have not flown since I retired from the Air Force. On the other hand when I watch a movie like Saving Private Ryan or Hacksaw Ridge I don't know if I could do what those soldiers did. Or do what those New York firemen and police officers did on September 11th 2001. I have never been tested to that degree. 

Fear is a powerful motivator. That is why politicians use it so effectively. Covid, and the tyranny imposed upon America by the Federal, state and local governments over the last two years in the name of fighting Covid, has forced me to think a lot about how much of my liberty I am willing to sacrifice. I am a firm believer in the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. The rights listed in the Bill of Rights are not negotiable. They are inalienable rights which mean that they are God given and can only be taken away by God. On certain things like being forced to inject a drug into my body that I don't want or allowing government to limit my right to worship in public, or to exercise my my right of free speech I have mentally had to draw a line in the sand. I won't lie to you. The thought of dying from Covid terrifies me. I have watched my son and several friends die from it. It is a serious disease not to be taken lightly. Diseases on the other hand come and go but freedom, once it is lost, is gone forever. In spite of my fears I won't wear an obedience mask and I haven't worn one since the pandemic began unless I am at the doctor. If I can get away with not wearing one I don't. It bothers me to see so many people wearing masks, especially when walking alone outside, exercising, or driving alone in their car. It especially bothers when I see young people doing these things.

 The bottom line is this. There are worse things than death. Like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego I can bow down to the idols of this world or I can trust God to deliver me. If he chooses not to deliver me on earth I can know, like they did, that I will inherit eternal life. That is the true definition of faith. Like Patrick Henry I am curious. Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? I say no. As for me give me liberty or give me death. 



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