Baptist nation?, Christian nation?: Religious Freedom

• We are a nation of Christians, not a Christian nation. yes, there is a BIG difference.
• Two major forms of Idolatry to look out for:  Nationalism/Patriotism,  SELF 
• We are here for the sole purpose of loving one another and letting God's light shine through us. We are called to demonstrate God's love to the world in accordance with the great commission.
• Jefferson was most proud of 3 things:  UVA, Declaration of Independence and the VA Statute of Religious Liberty.
• It is amazing that the founders ratified the first amendment of the constitution.
• Freedom is messy, but it is ordained. Free will, freedom to choose God or not..
• We must maintain a perspective which balances history, present issues and a reasonable/diverse view of the future implications for our decisions/actions.
• We are NOT in control. GOD is.
• Government and all authority exists from GOD. 

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

--- Marianne Williamson.
VA Statute of Religious Liberty Reference:  http://www.vahistorical.org/sva2003/vsrf.htm

Jefferson on Politics & Government:  http://etext.virginia.edu/jefferson/quotations/jeff1650.htm

Constitution 1st Amendment:  Freedom of Religion and Press:   http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html#Am1

Roman 8 (Message)--   http://www.Biblica.com/bible/verse/?q=Romans8&msg=yes
v28  ...we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.

Jeremiah 29:5-14 (Message)-- http://www.Biblica.com/bible/verse/?q=Jeremiah29&msg=yes
⁵"Build houses and make yourselves at home. "Put in gardens and eat what grows in that country. ⁶"Marry and have children. Encourage your children to marry and have children so that you'll thrive in that country and not waste away. ⁷"Make yourselves at home there and work for the country's welfare. "Pray for Babylon's well-being. If things go well for Babylon, things will go well for you." ^{8 -9}Yes. Believe it or not, this is the Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, Israel's God: "Don't let all those so-called preachers and know-it-alls who are all over the place there take you in with their lies. Don't pay any attention to the fantasies they keep coming up with to please you. They're a bunch of liars preaching lies—and claiming I sent them! I never sent them, believe me." God's Decree! ^{10 -11}This is God's Word on the subject: "As soon as Babylon's seventy years are up and not a day before, I'll show up and take care of you as I promised and bring you back home. I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for. ¹²"When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I'll listen. ^{13 -14}"When you come looking for me, you'll find me. "Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I'll make sure you won't be disappointed." God's Decree. "I'll turn things around for you. I'll bring you back from all the countries into which I drove you"—God's Decree—"bring you home to the place from which I sent you off into exile. You can count on it.

Romans 13:1-10 (Message)-- http://www.Biblica.com/bible/verse/?q=Romans13&msg=yes
^{1 -3}Be a good citizen. All governments are under God. Insofar as there is peace and order, it's God's order. So live responsibly as a citizen. If you're irresponsible to the state, then you're irresponsible with God, and God will hold you responsible. Duly constituted authorities are only a threat if you're trying to get by with something. Decent citizens should have nothing to fear.
 ^{3 -5}Do you want to be on good terms with the government? Be a responsible citizen and you'll get on just fine, the government working to your advantage. But if you're breaking the rules right and left, watch out. The police aren't there just to be admired in their uniforms. God also has an interest in keeping order, and he uses them to do it. That's why you must live responsibly—not just to avoid punishment but also because it's the right way to live.  ^{6 -7}That's also why you pay taxes—so that an orderly way of life can be maintained. Fulfill your obligations as a citizen. Pay your taxes, pay your bills, respect your leaders.  ^{8 -10}Don't run up debts, except for the huge debt of love you owe each other. When you love others, you complete what the law has been after all along. The law code—don't sleep with another person's spouse, don't take someone's life, don't take what isn't yours, don't always be wanting what you don't have, and any other "don't" you can think of—finally adds up to this: Love other people as well as you do yourself. You can't go wrong when you love others. When you add up everything in the law code, the sum total is love