Tag Archives: freedom

July 4, 2024 · 5:30 AM

Living In Freedom

I once heard the story that some scientists did an experiment with some fish. They took a predator fish and its prey and put them in the same tank. The predator ate the prey. The scientist then placed a piece of glass in the middle dividing the aquarium. They placed the prey on the other side of the glass. They predator repeatedly attacked, but kept hitting the glass. Each day it tried fewer and fewer times to go after the prey. When it quit trying, they removed the glass. They prey fish swam all over, but the predator never went after them. Whether the study is true or not, I don’t know, but the conditions of the mind is true.

Romans 12:2 says, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect” (NLT). You and I are raised and live in a society that lives in opposition to God’s way of living. Our minds are like the predator fish. We’ve been conditioned with the mindset of this world and its values. We are in need of transformation and renewal of our minds so that we can live the way God called us to live, which starts by changing how we think. Our thoughts direct our behavior, as referenced by the predator. God wants to continually transform us through our mindset.

1 Corinthians 7:23 says, “Since a great price was paid for your redemption, stop having the mind-set of a slave” (TPT). Once we receive Christ, we are set free from being slaves to sin and our fallen way of thinking and living. Even though we are free, we will have to continually fight against the glass in the tank mentality. That’s why we need God to renew our minds and our way of thinking. We often fall short of who He created us to be because we live with our old mindset. Pray today that God would transform your mind and way of thinking so that you can live the life you were created to live. Remember Galatians 5:1: “Freedom is what we have—Christ has set us free! Stand, then, as free people, and do not allow yourselves to become slaves again” (GNT).

Photo by Dino Reichmuth @ Unsplash

Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

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October 25, 2023 · 5:41 AM

Living Free

There was a worker at the LA Zoo who tells the story of some red tailed hawks they received from the police. They had been brought in cages and told to take care of them until the trial. As time went by, he would see those hawks in cages and it would break his heart. He didn’t know when or if the trial would ever take place. He felt the bigger crime was keeping these birds locked up in cages. Finally he decided to unlock the cages and let the birds out even if it cost him his job. Once the birds were out, they just stood there on the table. He shewed them and tried to scare them into flying, but nothing worked. They had gotten used to the prison of cages and refused to fly away even though he had set them free. He finally gave up and let them back in their cages.

In the book of Exodus we read how the Israelites had been slaves in Egypt for hundreds of years. Even though they were numerous, they had adjusted to life in the prison of Egypt. God sent Moses to liberate them and to take them to the Promised Land. On the way there, they kept complaining how things were easier in Egypt. They began to resent their freedom and question God. They started fantasizing about life in Egypt because it was what they knew. They preferred predictability over purpose. They were hoping that freedom brought convenience, but found that it took work. Their complaints reached God who had set them free. He provided food and water for them, but still they complained. With this attitude they could never fight the battles needed to dispel the nations living in the place God was leading them. Instead of taking them back to Egypt, He kept them in the desert until a generation came that was willing to fight for the freedom and promises of God.

Galatians 5:1 says, “It was for this freedom that Christ set us free [completely liberating us]; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery [which you once removed]” (AMP). It’s easy to look at the hawks and the children of Israel and think they should have just spread their wings and enjoyed their freedom. It’s another thing to look in the mirror and see if you are still standing by your cage wanting back in. If God has set you free, it’s time to fly. It’s not going to be easy. It’s going to cost you discipline, time and effort. God has broken open the doors that held you in and has a place of promise for you. Are you reminiscing about the predictability of the past? Have you been fantasizing about how easy it was before? Those are the lies of the enemy trying to draw you back in and to make you ineffective in a desert land. It’s time to stand firm, armor up and take the land of freedom that God has set before you.

Photo by Taylor Deas-Melesh on Unsplash

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January 6, 2023 · 5:39 AM

Be Free

One of the things that most of us are pretty good at is disqualifying ourselves from doing things for God. We accept His grace for our sins, but have a hard time letting go of the chains that once held us. We think, “God can’t use me because I did…” Or we let our sickness or disability disqualify us. I want to remind you that it was for your freedom that Christ set you free. Put down the chains. They’ve been broken. You have been freed from them. Don’t let them hold you back any longer. You have been given a robe of righteousness to wear instead of your guilt. You’ve been given a crown instead of shackles, joy for mourning, peace for despair and beauty for ashes. You have been freed. Walk in your freedom and share your story to help others who are captive to find their freedom.

Here are some Bible verses on God freeing you.

1. When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability.”

Luke 13:12 ESV

2. For with the heart a person believes [in Christ as Savior] resulting in his justification [that is, being made righteous—being freed of the guilt of sin and made acceptable to God]; and with the mouth he acknowledges and confesses [his faith openly], resulting in and confirming [his] salvation.

Romans 10:10 AMP

3. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.

Romans 8:2 NLT

4. Listen to my testimony: I cried to God in my distress and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears!

Psalms 34:4 TPT

5. Lord, because I am your loving servant, you have broken open my life and freed me from my chains.

Psalms 116:16 TPT

Photo by Peter Herrmann on Unsplash

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May 30, 2022 · 5:48 AM

Celebrate Freedom

Most countries have some sort of day each year where they honor fallen soldiers. In the United States we have Memorial Day. Whatever country you’re in, this day is not really a day of celebration as many believe. It’s a somber day to stop and honor those who have fallen in battle. It’s a time where we should contemplate the cost of freedom that we enjoy. Many of us live our lives in freedom, but take it for granted. We forget the price that was and is being paid by those who stand up against those who want to take it away.

In a room in Jerusalem some 2,000 years ago, Jesus was having is final meal with His disciples. They didn’t understand the significance of the moment they were in, but they recorded what happened for us. It started off with Jesus washing the disciples’ feet. It wasn’t that much longer that He picked up some unleavened bread, blessed it’s and broke it symbolizing how He was about to be broken for our freedom from sickness. He then passed around the cup of wine for them to drink symbolizing His blood that would be poured out to give freedom from sin.

Luke 22:19 says, “Then he took a piece of bread, gave thanks to God, broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in memory of me’” (GMT). As Christians, we celebrate a different kind of Memorial Day each time we celebrate the Lord’s Supper. We can’t let it become just a ritual we participate in. We are to remember the price that was paid for our freedom each time we take it. If Jesus has set you free, then you are free indeed and have much to be thankful for each time you participate in Communion. As they say, “Freedom is not free.” Someone paid for you to have it whether physical or spiritual.

Photo by Geda Žyvatkauskaitė on Unsplash

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December 6, 2021 · 5:20 AM

Living In Freedom

I once heard the story that some scientists did an experiment with some fish. They took a predator fish and its prey and put them in the same tank. The predator ate the prey. The scientist then placed a piece of glass in the middle dividing the aquarium. They placed the prey on the other side of the glass. They predator repeatedly attacked, but kept hitting the glass. Each day it tried fewer and fewer times to go after the prey. When it quit trying, they removed the glass. They prey fish swam all over, but the predator never went after them. Whether the study is true or not, I don’t know, but the conditions of the mind is true.

Romans 12:2 says, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect” (NLT). You and I are raised and live in a society that lives in opposition to God’s way of living. Our minds are like the predator fish. We’ve been conditioned with the mindset of this world and its values. We are in need of transformation and renewal of our minds so that we can live the way God called us to live, which starts by changing how we think. Our thoughts direct our behavior, as referenced by the predator. God wants to continually transform us through our mindset.

1 Corinthians 7:23 says, “Since a great price was paid for your redemption, stop having the mind-set of a slave” (TPT). Once we receive Christ, we are set free from being slaves to sin and our fallen way of thinking and living. Even though we are free, we will have to continually fight against the glass in the tank mentality. That’s why we need God to renew our minds and our way of thinking. We often fall short of who He created us to be because we live with our old mindset. Pray today that God would transform your mind and way of thinking so that you can live the life you were created to live. Remember Galatians 5:1: “Freedom is what we have—Christ has set us free! Stand, then, as free people, and do not allow yourselves to become slaves again” (GNT).

Photo by Joshua Earle on Unsplash

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May 17, 2021 · 5:53 AM

The Baton Of Freedom

When I was in high school, I ran track. One of the races I ran was a relay race. We would constantly practice handing off the baton. In the race, you could look back while you were standing still, but when the person handing you the baton said, “Run,” you took off and waited to hear, “Hand!” At that point, you opened your hand behind you and they would smack it on your hand to ensure you got it. The rule was you never looked back. If you looked back, you were likely to slow down, trip or even fault by stepping out of your lane. The person receiving the baton was blind to the exchange and had to trust the one handing it off. Their job was to keep their eyes ahead and run like crazy once they got the baton.

Paul used a similar story in Philippians 3:12-14. He wrote, “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us” (NLT). One of the hardest things for us to do is to forget the past and to look forward. When we’re constantly looking backwards, we can’t give our full attention to what lies ahead. We’re likely to go slower, trip again or step out of our lane.

Proverbs 4:25-27 says, “Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. Mark out a straight path for your feet; stay on the safe path. Don’t get sidetracked; keep your feet from following evil.” Where are you looking? Are you being sidetracked by your past? Remember that the things that happened in your past often qualify you for the future work God wants to do through you. If we’re wallowing in pity or shame, it’s hard to focus on handing the baton of freedom to others. God has ordered your steps, but it’s up to you to walk in them. Quit looking backwards and look straight ahead. There are some amazing things yet to be done, but you can’t accomplish them by looking backwards. Learn from your past, find freedom in Christ and run like crazy toward the goals and freedom God sets in front of you.

Photo by Pixabay from Pexels

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July 4, 2019 · 5:00 AM

Choosing Freedom

Freedom is not something that is uniquely American. It was instituted by a God Himself. His desire is that all of us live free lives. We are the ones who constantly put ourselves in bondage through our actions. We are the ones who put ourselves in position to let others bind us up. God has called us to live free lives according to Galatians 5:1. So why do we do the things that take us away from freedom? Why do we lament the past when we were slaves instead of celebrating the freedoms we currently enjoy?

It’s a problem that goes back as far as time. When the children of Israel were set free from the bondage of Egypt, they cried out, “There we sat around pots filled with meat and ate all the bread we wanted.” In their freedom, they looked back on their time of slavery as a positive thing. They didn’t grasp what it meant to be free, so they would have rather gone back into slavery than to have lived in the freedom that God had granted them. It sounds absurd, but are we so different?

We let what other people have said or done to us imprison us in our minds and actions. We let the past dictate our present. God has set us free, but we allow unforgiveness to hold us down and rob us of freedom. We allow grudges and pain to keep us from trusting anyone. When that happens, we hold ourselves back from the future God has for us. We let what man has done to us rob us of the blessings of freedom. We hold ourselves back in that prison not wanting to get out because it’s safer to stay there. Freedom requires action on our part to move forward and to stay free.

Galatians 5:13-15 says, “Use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows… Love others as you love yourself. That’s an act of true freedom” (MSG). Selfishness is the doorway to imprisonment. Serving others is the way to staying free. When we help others, despite how many times we’ve been taken advantage of, we walk in freedom. When we hold back because of things that have happened, we allow that freedom to slip away. Edmund Burke said, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” As Christians, we can’t sit around and do nothing and stay free.

Photo by J W on Unsplash

Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other writing ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

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November 21, 2017 · 5:46 AM

Praise God

In the early 1990’s, I signed up for a music subscription service. Each month, Maranatha! Music would send me a tape of praise and worship. All I had to do was mail them a check each month. It doesn’t take long to build up a collection that way. Their tapes were most of the music I had. I fell in love with Praise and Worship at a young age. I loved what it did for my soul. If i was having a rough day, I could pop in a tape, and my troubles would disappear for a while.

Music in and of itself is powerful, but Praise and Worship is on a whole other level. It’s not just singing, it’s your soul crying out to the creator of the universe. Each song is a prayer that magnifies Him. It refocuses our attention from ourselves to our God. It changes our perspective of our problems. I think that’s a big part of why the Psalms in the Bible are so popular. It’s not just David being honest that we relate to. It’s his prayers and praise that our soul longs to give to God.

Psalm 147:1 says, “Praise the Lord! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting” (ESV). I don’t care what your situation is, praise is fitting for it. It’s always the right time to praise God. Are you on top of the mountain? Praise God. Are you struggling in the valley? Praise God. Are you stressed out? Praise God. Did you get a raise? Praise God. It is good to praise God and to have a song of praise continually in your mouth.

If you’re not familiar with modern Praise and Worship, go to YouTube and search for Bethel Music, Hillsong, Kari Jobe, Matt Redman or just type, “Praise and Worship mix”. Let praise fill your heart and mouth today. You were created to give God praise. It’s not just something we should do for a few songs on Sunday morning at church. It should be a lifestyle that honors God. When you begin to live a life of praise, everything in your life will change because God inhabits the praises of His people.

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October 3, 2017 · 5:53 AM

Chain Free Living


To demonstrate how difficult it is to accomplish even the easiest tasks while you are bound up, I once tried to preach a sermon with my hands tied behind my back. I wasn’t sure how it would play out, but it proved to be more difficult than I could imagine. My first problem was holding the microphone. Then I needed help turning the pages in my bible. After that, I needed to turn the page in my notes. Finally, I couldn’t use my hands then I spoke, which apparently I do.

So many of us try to do more than speak while we are bound up. We actually try to go through life while we are bound up in depression, addiction, grief, sin, etc. If you’ve been there, you know that even the smallest tasks can prove to be difficult. Go designed you to live a life of freedom. As Paul wrote, “It was for freedom that He set you free.” Jesus also said, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.”

There’s a song called “Chain Breaker” that says, “If you’ve got pain, He’s a pain taker. If you feel lost, He’s a way maker. If you need freedom or saving, He’s a prison-shaking Savior. If you’ve got chains, He’s a chain breaker.” The words to this song remind me that I don’t have to live bound up in my chains. There is no chain so strong that God cannot break it in your life. There is no depression so dark that He can’t bring you out of it. I’ve been in the deep, dark prison of depression and He set me free.

I love reading Psalm 107 because it’s a reminder of what God can do for us. In verse 14 it says, “He brought them out of their gloom and darkness and broke their chains in pieces” (GNT). If you’re bound up by chains today or are in a dark place, call out to God. Ask Him to lead you out of that place and to set you free. I know if He did it in my life, He can do it in yours. It’s time we all got back to living the life of freedom that God created us to live.

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June 21, 2017 · 5:22 AM

Understanding The Why


My son is very inquisitive. He is always asking why or how. In most cases, the answer is above his ability to understand. I try to tell him to let it go, but sometimes he just keeps at it. So I tell him. His nose scrunched up, his eyes squint and he looks confused in those moments. Then he starts asking more questions trying to understand. I’ll just keep going down the rabbit hole with him until he gives up or I can think of an easy explanation that he can understand so we can move on.

I’m not so sure that we are so different when it comes to God. When things happen in our lives, we ask God why or how. What I’ve found is so many times the answer is beyond our ability to understand. It’s tough for us to let it go too. I’m a person that needs to know the why behind things before I do them. If I don’t know the why, I don’t understand the importance or urgency that needs to be behind what I’ve been asked to do.

When God asks me to go somewhere or do something, that’s usually my first question. For me, it doesn’t come from a lack of faith or disobedience. I just like to know why before I do something. With that in mind, Proverbs 20:24 speaks to me in regards to when God asks me to do something or go somewhere. It says, “The Lord directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?” (NLT) 

If we believe God truly directs our steps, then we need to trust His reasons that are beyond our ability to understand. How much time and energy do we waste while we question God? I know He’s patient, it I bet sometimes He just wishes we’d simply obey and trust that He sees the bigger picture and is working out things for our good even though we can’t see it or understand it at the moment. We need to let go of trying to understand everything and just obey.

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