Hello, this is Tammy Reneé. And that is quite the mission we have been given. I’m excited for this new podcast where we are going to ferret out the truth, just like he asked. And really delve into the freedom for which God has called us. I want you to join me in this. For what we are called to do is not a Mission Impossible, as it might actually look like, but a Mission Possible and that is because we have the help of our Savior, Jesus Christ. For we know that it is through Him that we can do all things. So, welcome to Mission Possible: Truth and Freedom. This is our maiden voyage.
I find less and less reason in this mixed-up world to stay quiet or passive. Mind you, I espouse good behavior and my parents trained me toward good morals and civility, but I am not given to a “behave-yourself” mentality when my liberties are infringed, and unreasonable demands are made upon me to conform. Compliance might prove a nice thing to do when nothing much is at stake, but if freedom is at stake, I get pretty edgy.
I have actually been this way for years, but my world was often limited to the sensible anticipations of an audience who expected me to sing, not rant; to perform and generate inspiration, not pontificate. But now it is time to expose my inner thoughts in these Mission Possible podcasts. If you have only known me as a singer, recording artist, and entertainer, I’ll try to let you down gently.
If my world was limited by what my audience expected of me, I’ll be transparent even more by pointing out how my world is further limited. It includes the pleasure I give to the ongoing care and supervision of my dear mother. Yes, we have our rough days. The restrictions that for all practical purposes keep both of us at home doesn’t mean I am prevented from accessing my computer and putting these podcasts together as a way to reach beyond my present constraints and challenges. (When I’m recording I tell her she has to be quiet and she actually likes to listen to me talk.) Honestly, I am glad that such an opportunity exists. It has truly lifted the limitations and given me a new set of wings. I sincerely thank my faithful subscribers who provide me the wind beneath those wings.
Meanwhile, my friends say I and my insights might just qualify as a best-kept secret, and whatever you may believe about that, the point is that I do pay attention to what goes on in the world and through independent research through the years I have developed opinions and philosophies (just as I’m sure you have). I seek to keep those perspectives attached to the anchor of God’s Word so I can contribute to some stability in a raging cultural ocean.
Of all the goings-on in our world today and the pressures to embrace political and social narratives, many of which I suspicion are unworthy of this great nation and its Founders. Those who know me best understand that if I am to comply, I’ll do so because I am convinced by my own fact-gathering and prudent Bible-directed discretion that it is more than reasonable to do so. However, I am less and less convinced of what is classified as reasonable these days. And I have never done well with the do-what-your-told expectation, especially when it is void of reason or short on research. If you could ask my parents if this was true they would give strong testimony to affirm that it is indeed. I have always been my own person with my own thoughts, along with a pretty strong will.
If this podcast represented just the words of a rebel or a non-conformist, I might find some tolerance in the eyes of most for a little while. But I would probably soon hear: “Poor Tammy, off on some tangent. She needs to stick to singing.” (I hope you don’t say that.) And my parents would also tell you that I was never rebellious.
But if I actually start going on record and publish podcasts by organizing some logical thoughts that start making sense to truth-lovers, like you, like me, (like I hope happens) then those who listen might just want to go on record with me and be found guilty of their own radical search for the truth.
As I reflect on what I just said, I suppose we have arrived at a sad day when the search for the truth is classified as “radical” instead of commonplace. But the first thing we must commit to is to dig the truth out of obscurity, remove it from under the rubble that has been thrown on top of it in attempts to bury it; then we must put our sense of denial away, face up to what is really happening, and courageously tell the truth to ourselves in private; especially when we lay in bed at night, not yet given over to sleep, and wonder exactly why our country slips through our fingers. And what concerns me as well is that many church leaders only spectate the sad realities. We all must passionately spread the truth to others in public interchange and healthy discussion.
Billy Graham said, “When a brave man takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened.”
Mind you, I am not at all announcing my bravery, because I can easily become queasy with what is happening in the world. In fact, I am often unnerved.
I guess I’m saying that I am trying to bring answers to two very important questions: If not now, when? If not me, who? I take guidance from Isaiah 6:8 where the Lord starts by asking, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” And the response from Isaiah is, “Here I am! Send me.”
Another demand made upon me that the truth take precedence in all we say and do is the demand of the Scriptures. Its principles and standards define the path that Christians are supposed to walk. Wait! Let me adjust that statement a bit. Its principles and standards define the path all people are supposed to walk. I am not promoting Christian utopia or a state-based church here. I say it only because everyone will stand before the Judge one day and give an account of their lives. And, furthermore, it is not a foreign thought to suppose that more might be expected of those who do claim a Bible-based Christian identity on this side of judgment day.
Hey, listen, if you are paying attention, you know that there are forces making efforts to silence Biblical perspectives; to drastically change the way you live and move about the earth’s terrain.
When Paul addressed a conflict experienced among the Corinthian Christians, he made a succinct and notable appeal as the reason why they should come to a resolution and bring a settlement to their conflict. He said, “Do you not know that we are to judge angels? How much more, then, matters pertaining to this life!”
With this in mind, I am asking God to help me no longer attempt to wiggle free of the responsibility to address such things as political, social, and cultural issues that put this country, even my very neighbors and relatives, in danger. Or which make attempts at diluting long-established principles, which serve as the glue to keep the culture from falling apart altogether. Nor am I any less disgusted with manipulations of recent months that also need exposure to the truth.
“Appointed to judge angels” means (at the very least) we better have a conviction about things like abortion on demand, and sexual immorality curriculum in our schools that trespasses the minds of our children . . .
. . . And, of course, a hundred other things.
Maybe I should say, like I often do … “Don’t get me started.” But as you can see, I have started already and however God leads me, and by His grace, I plan on finishing. As I see it the only other alternatives are cowardice, gullibility, or lethargy and the kind of results created by such.
I’m not going there.
So, this particular podcast and all its episodes are where I seek to galvanize others around a common mission to find the truth in our world today with the idea that truth, and its results, belong the most to those who love it the most. I don’t claim expert status, or even that I will always be right, but I can serve my community as a curator and reporter, by drawing on reliable sources.
My premise is that truth originates with God and sets people free. Therefore, an ongoing search for truth is the way we steward our personal and national freedom wisely. Borrowing from Michel de Montaigne, I seek to know and speak the truth not so much as I would, but as much as I dare, and I dare a little more as I spend more time watching the culture dilute the truth into something less compelling; where even the keenest of minds avoid intimacy with the truth to keep it at a manageable distance.
How do we know this? Well, this is evidenced when personal and popular opinions are assumed true–only because they are personal and popular; and certainly not because such opinions have successfully navigated the crucibles of life, including the passage of enough time and testing to come to reasonable conclusions. Further evidence includes the fact that such opinions have not been compared to, or extracted from, the long-established wisdom of a Judeo-Christian worldview, and the Bible that is its foundation.
And then there are many other public opinions that take precedence and are assumed true only because they are asserted repeatedly or manipulated cleverly. And if fear can be introduced, all the better; as fear is an effective control dynamic to discourage and prevent people from independent research, critical thinking, objective evaluation, and common sense–all the things that make truth discoverable.
We live in a day where the worst of lies and falsehoods can be made equal with the truth in the minds of many, thereby creating flawed and faulty foundations on which to build. I believe all such opinions, however, can eventually be transformed in the light and heat of Truth and Facts. There is something powerfully practical and personally liberating about the inescapable words of Jesus when he said, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
I’m Tammy Reneé. And this is Mission Possible: Truth and Freedom
“Do you not know that we are to judge angels? How much more, then, matters pertaining to this life!”
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
Announcer: Freedom will prove the ultimate evidence that truth was allowed to have its way . . . Godspeed.
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