Free Indeed

Celebrating True Freedom This July 4th

“So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.”  — John 8:36 (NLT)

As America celebrates her 250th birthday this July 4th, fireworks will light up the sky, families will gather around backyard grills, and the word “freedom” will be spoken a thousand times. It’s a beautiful word. A powerful word. But this year, I can’t celebrate it without thinking about the deeper freedom that changed my life — and the God who made it possible.

Held Captive in the Dark

For years, I didn’t know what freedom felt like. Alcohol and drug addiction weren’t just habits I had — they were the air I breathed. I had never known a different way of living. The darkness was so saturating, so complete, that I didn’t even realize I was in chains.

I thought I was living on my own terms. I thought I was free. But freedom and independence aren’t the same thing. I was walking my own road, all right — straight into bondage. The life I was living made it almost impossible to dream. A loving husband. Children. A home that felt safe and warm. Those weren’t goals for someone like me. They were faint, almost laughable whispers from a little girl who didn’t exist anymore.

Sick and Tired of Being Sick and Tired

I don’t know exactly how to explain the moment things shifted. I just know I finally hit a wall. I was so sick and tired of being sick and tired that I cried out to a God I didn’t understand — and honestly wasn’t even sure existed.

“If there is a God, then come and help me.”

That was my prayer. Just desperate and real.

What happened next is still hard to put into words. The most indescribable sense of calm washed over me. I didn’t have a name for it yet — I didn’t even know what peace felt like. But that’s exactly what it was. God showing up. God answering. The chains starting to loosen.

The Freedoms That Kept Coming

March 17, 1990. That’s the date I last abused substances. And from that day forward, it’s like freedom just kept unfolding — layer after layer, year after year. Job promotions. A second healthy son born into this world. A new home. Spiritual growth that went deeper than I ever imagined possible.

Those faint little-girl dreams? They didn’t just come true — they were exceeded in ways I never could have scripted on my best day. God didn’t just free me from something. He freed me for something. And that something has been a life so full it takes my breath away.

This Fourth of July, I get to celebrate with my husband of 39 years — the man who was once just a dream. Our boys, and the incredible women they married. And three little grandsons who have no idea that their grandmother once couldn’t have imagined their existence. The blessings from freedom truly are endless.

Two Kinds of Freedom Worth Celebrating

As America marks 250 years of independence, I think about the parallels. A nation that was once in bondage, crying out for something different, willing to fight for the freedom it knew had to exist. You can read more about America’s 250th anniversary celebration at america250.org. There’s something profound about a nation built on the idea that freedom matters — that people deserve to live unshackled.

But here’s what I know from the inside out: political freedom is precious, and spiritual freedom is incomparable. One can be taken away. The other cannot. America’s founders fought for the right to live free. Jesus paid for it once and for all.

Scriptures to Hold Onto

“So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.”  — John 8:36 (NLT)

“So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law.”  — Galatians 5:1 (NLT)

You Can Be Free, Too

Maybe you’re reading this and you’re right where I was. Sick and tired. Chains you’ve stopped trying to name. Dreams that feel too far gone to even remember.

Friend, I am living proof that the prayer of a desperate woman — a woman who didn’t even know if God was real — gets answered. You don’t have to have it figured out. You just have to be willing to ask.

This July 4th, I’m celebrating two kinds of freedom: the freedom of a nation that dared to believe people deserved better, and the freedom of a God who set me free when I had nothing left to offer. Both are worth lighting up the sky for.

With love,

Sue 💛

Explore books and resources to strengthen your faith and encourage your daily walk with God:
www.suelhamilton.com