The Day After

Sunday, July 5, 2026

The Rev. Dr. Ben Huelskamp

LGBTQIA+ Person of Faith

Executive Director, LOVEboldly

Quote

“For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.”

~Galatians 5:1 (NRSVUE)

Devotion

The fireworks are over. The cookouts are done. The flags are coming down. It’s the day after Independence Day, and everything feels a little quieter, a little more ordinary.

I've always had complicated feelings about the Fourth of July. All that talk about freedom and liberty, while knowing that freedom in America has never been equally distributed. Some of us—many of us—are still fighting for the independence others take for granted: the freedom to marry, to adopt children, to use public restrooms, to exist in our bodies without legislatures debating our rights.

Paul’s letter to the Galatians talks about a different kind of freedom, the kind Christ offers. He’s writing to people who are being told they need to follow certain religious laws to truly belong, that they need to add requirements and conditions to the grace they’ve already received. Paul pushes back hard: you’re already free. Don’t let anyone put chains back on you.

That resonates deeply for those of us who’ve been told we need to change, fix ourselves, become someone else to be acceptable to God or to the church. We’ve already been set free to be exactly who we are, to love who we love, to live in our truth. The freedom Christ offers isn’t something we earn by conforming. It's something we claim by refusing to shrink.

The day after a holiday is when the real work begins. The celebration is over, and we’re back to the daily practice of living into the freedom we claim to believe in. For some of us, that means continuing to show up authentically even when it’s costly. For others, it means creating space where people who’ve never known freedom can finally breathe.

Freedom isn’t a parade. It’s a practice. And it’s one we’re called to again and again, every ordinary day after the party ends.

Reflection

1.    What does true freedom look like for you, not just legal rights, but the freedom to be fully yourself?

2.    Where in your life are you still carrying “yokes of slavery:” expectations, shame, or fear that keep you from living freely?

3.    How can you practice freedom in small, daily ways rather than waiting for dramatic moments of liberation?

Action

Identify one small way you’ve been conforming or hiding to make others comfortable. This week, practice freedom by being authentic in that area, even if it’s just with one person, even if it feels small. Freedom grows through practice, not proclamation.