Hurting Others and Hurting Yourself

I had this thought while sitting on a couch in Caldwell Hall listening to Anathallo. I have no idea what sparked it, and I have drawn few, if any, conclusions about it. What I write here will be pretty much the same writing that appears in my journal.

In this country, apparently, we want the law to protect others from hurting us, but we do not want any laws regulating whether or not we can hurt ourselves. When some legislation is passed limiting our ability to hurt ourselves, we immediately cry out against it. We want suicide to be legal, weed to be legal, and no law against drunkeness. The abortion debate is similar. As long as the baby is part of the woman, she is free to injure herself; the child dies. If the child is a person separate from the mother, he is protected under the law regardless of his location. Should the law prevent me from hurting myself? Is that my free choice? Should legislation try to curb self-destructive behavior? Does my hurting myself injuring other people? Our system of government operates under the assumption that people want the best for themselves, and that they do not wish to injure themselves (because that is presumably not the best). The great political experiment that is the American Government is a system supported by morality. When morality is removed, how will the structure stand? What will support

Most of you know that I take freedom very seriously, and I am not a proponent of denying freedoms in order to gain security. I am by no means sure what the answers to any of these questions are, and I am trying to figure them out.

Spring break begins for me at the end of the week. I am going to Chicago for all of break to work in the inner city at soup kitchens, nursing homes, orphanages, child-care programs, and to spread the gospel to those who need to hear of their Savior. If you think of it, please pray for me that I will be encouraged by the power of the Gospel. Pray for boldness to speak the truth, "to preach the gospel to the poor, to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are oppressed, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord" (Isaiah 61:1-2).

I hope everyone is well and that your coming breaks are refreshing to you. If you are in Raleigh, feel free to call and perhaps we can sit and reason together. Be encouraged in the resurrection which has swallowed up death in victory. What have we to fear? (1 Cor. 15) Do not fall into the temptation to compartmentalize your life. The resurrection affects all parts of our lives from the way we eat lunch to the way we study solid mechanics or literature or biochemistry. A transcendent God cannot be kept from enveloping your whole life.

"Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord."
~1 Corinthians 15:52