Pursuit of Freedom: Uncovering Candace’s True Reasons

^{Photo by Alexandru Zdrobău}

The pursuit of freedom has always been a goal that many of us have been trying to achieve for many years now, and it’s something often done out of love.

But in Hosea The Prophet Who Married a Prostitute by Joseph Descans, readers are going to find out that Candace’s reasons for pursuing freedom are not part of the facets of unconditional love. Similar to Gomer in the Bible, Candace wants to have freedom for all the wrong reasons. Freedom isn’t exactly helpful if we don’t use it for good, after all.

Today, we’re going to take a better look at Candace’s decision to pursue freedom for herself and discuss a bit whether it was really a good call or not.

How Was Candace Deceived to Pursue Freedom?

Now, we wouldn’t want to spoil too much here because you absolutely have to read the book to fully understand Candace’s motives. With that in mind, we’ll be treading lightly about the details here, but we’ll be sure to give you the gist of it.

Basically, Candace wants to pursue freedom because she feels she lost it when she got married to Hosea. Similar to regular folks who get married, Candace was beginning to feel the responsibilities and changes that come along with marriage. With the babies, being a housewife, and not having a lot of time for herself, she felt like a prisoner in her situation.

There’s an excerpt from the book that perfectly sums up what Candace was feeling:

“All I do is make food, wash dishes and clothes, drive kids around from here to there. I want a life of my own. I used to have fun; I never get to go to a party or spend a night out on the town with my girlfriends like I used to.“

Was Freedom Truly What Candace Wanted?

There’s a chapter in the book when Candace finally gets the freedom she wants. She eventually grows estranged from her husband, Hosea. This breaks Hosea’s heart, but once you have the book with you, you’ll find out how he could keep going without his wife, Candace.

A significant sort of time skip takes place near and at the end, wherein Hosea and his children are eating breakfast. This was six months after Candace’s estrangement, so quite some time had passed. Pursuing freedom as an ideal truly allowed her to live the life she wanted.

Eventually, Candace returns home and reunites with her family. She tells Hosea, “Will you forgive me?” In Hosea The Prophet Who Married a Prostitute, as Candace realizes that freedom wasn’t what she truly wanted. Being alone and free as a bird in pursuit of freedom made her realize that her husband and children were the most important things in her life.

What Are the Things the Bible Says Regarding Freedom?

God did not create machines; He created humans. He grants us freedom via Jesus Christ, but we are not obligated to embrace it. He grants everyone the ability to choose whether or not to embrace His salvation. But the Bible forewarns that when people intentionally reject the truth, they go to a real place called hell.

In the same way, people who accept Christ are not compelled to follow Him everywhere. But God made it plain that living a life devoted to glorifying Him is the best. As some of the earliest Christians were informed by the apostle Paul:

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another” (Galatians 5:13).

Final Thoughts Regarding the Pursuit of Freedom

God’s Word emphasizes freedom in Christ throughout. Furthermore, God doesn’t keep us in the dark about how to seize the freedom He provides. The first step is to recognizeThe first step is to recognize our brokenness and enslavement to sin.

Believing in Jesus and serving Him every day is the final step. Now and forever, only He has the power to release us from the chains of slavery. He is the only one who can guide us towards genuine freedom.

Click here to buy a copy of Hosea The Prophet Who Married a Prostitute by Joseph Descans today. Start reading and enjoying the story of Hosea and Candace with a modern twist. Don’t forget to check out our other articles, too, and what is the role of the fish in the novel!