Living Free

The thing about living in the place of freedom, is that some people won't appreciate it. They will criticize you even to your friends and accuse you of being heretical, because you don't agree with them on everything. When that kind of stuff gets back to me, my initial reaction is to confront and defend myself. The problem with that is that people are going to have their own opinions about me, about life, about how to load the dishwasher... Considering the definition of heretic ("anyone who does not conform to an established attitude, doctrine, or principle"), I'm actually comfortable with that title given me by certain individuals. The Roman Catholic Church considers all Protestants to be heretics. The pharisees considered Jesus and his followers heretics. The word originated from the Greek, "hairetikos", which means, "able to choose". It is unpopular in some religious settings for people to actually think, pray, and hear from God themselves on issues of church doctrine and practice, rather than simply tow the party line. In their insecurities, they take personal offense at anyone who dares to disagree with them. (Perhaps they are envious that you have the courage to ask questions and they do not)

Some people in our lives are open to questions and to possibilities beyond what they've "always done/believed". Some are too rigid to accept or approve anyone who disagrees with their opinion. For those of us on the receiving end of their criticisms, we must decide to rise above the muck and let our lives be our defense. While there may be instances when legal action or confrontation is necessary (as in the case of blatant slander), most of the time the best defense is to continue living and walking in the freedom we have in Christ. Though it might be tempting to "fight back", confront your accuser(s), or deal directly with those who have been mis-informed about you, all these things do is validate the false accuser. Those who really know you will not be persuaded of these falsehoods. They will see through lies to the jealousies/insecurities and paranoia of your accuser(s). Those who are deceived will not be persuaded otherwise by your self-defense. Ultimately, it is God who truly knows and judges the hearts of men. We must focus our lives on knowing, loving, and pleasing him. Let us live our lives full and free in Him, and let everyone else deal with the weight of it!