The Love of God is Full of FREEDOM!

We had a young visitor at church Sunday. He’s recently been released from prison and was looking for a word of encouragement. He has a job in another state and will be living there. He wants to make sure that he never makes the same mistakes again. We prayed for him and with him.


He’s been released from prison. While there, he was released from the prison of his own life. He found the Lord there! Someone came in and shared the Gospel and he accepted Christ as his personal Savior. What sweet release. Don’t you know he’s thankful to be out in the world and be able to walk and talk and go where he wants to? Can’t you just imagine how wonderful it feels to be free as well from the prison bars of his past?

How are you dealing with things? Do you feel free? Or are you still bound to the prison of your past? Are you feeling terror that you will be made to pay for your mistakes over and over? Are you wondering how you can ever get truly free?

There is hope for the hopeless and help for the helpless! God has made a way for you and I to live in the light of His Word. To be saved from the penalty of our past. To be made free from the wrath to come. And to live a life that is pleasing to Him! You can live free in love, free in peace, free in success, free in value, free in your heart.

Oh beloved! God is your answer – He holds the keys to release you from everything you have been kept imprisoned by. From the things you’ve done to the unforgiveness pronounced on you by others. The love that God has for you is full of FREEDOM! The care God has for you is full of PEACE! For He pronounced your debts cancelled and you have a ticket to live forever in the light of His glory and grace! Run to the Lord, your Redeemer, and give Him all your troubles and cares and watch as He changes you into the free believer you were always meant to be.

John 8:32 And you will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free.

Romans 6:17-18 Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you. Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living.

2 Corinthians 3:17 For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

Psalm 119:45 I will walk in freedom, for I have devoted myself to your commandments.

Free To Be Me In Christ!

It was one of those times my mother was visiting at a friend’s house. I spied a girl next door and we struck up a conversation.  She invited me over to play.  We went together to play in her garage. I found out she was a ballerina and a little older than me. I wasn’t more than 4.  The playtime turned into bullying as she insisted that I had to stand on my tiptoes like a ballerina before she would open the garage doors and let me out. I was panicky but at age 4, I didn’t even think about crying for anyone to rescue me.  The friendship turned quickly into performance and I could not perform! It was ghastly. I tried knocking at the garage door but was quickly pushed away. Finally, my mother came looking for me.  I honestly don’t remember even telling her what happened. I may have, but I do still remember the terror of being locked away and having to perform. I also remember the tremendous relief at having my mother rescue me.

Performance. Perfection. Personality. Often the walk of faith can become a contest with these three.   We get saved and then we forget. So we begin to perform.  We find that we feel better when we’re achieving, executing and implementing. Busy becomes our best friend and cohort. If we can stay busy we can feel like we’re accomplishing something. Often though it’s a hamster’s wheel we find ourselves on.

While we’re busy performing we find that we need to be perfect – at everything. Perfection is the enemy of grace.  Why? Because grace says “Accepted as Is”, while Perfection says, “Keep working on it you’ll be good enough eventually”.  Perfection’s ally is comparison.  We look around at what others are doing and hope we can measure up.

If that wasn’t enough to garner attention and find release from the need to perform, here comes personality. Our nature is to become like those we’re around to find value, worth and esteem. Although I was not a ballerina, I found that I was trying harder and harder to be like my task master so that I could be granted good enough for release from the prison of that garage.  My usual childlike personality became frantic, terrified and ashamed.

We cannot make it out of the prison we are in on our own. You and I are destined to be prisoners all the days of our lives. Unless we are rescued! Rescue will never come at the hands of Performance, Perfection or Personality. It only comes from the One Who came to rescue, redeem and renew those who could not find freedom on their own.

Oh beloved, are you fighting for freedom? Are you searching for some measure of perfection to find peace? Have you found yourself wishing you could be more like “them” so you could be accepted?  Run this morning to the One Who made you just the way you are! Run to the Arms of the One Who says Accepted! Jesus is the Only One Who can set you free so that you can be truly free! Let Him show you the keys He holds in His hands. Let Him love you all the way to Calvary and beyond. Let Him teach you from His Word that the stone at the tomb was rolled away for your complete and total freedom! He loves you, loves you, loves you and He’s on your side – saying you are His, you are perfected in Him and His plans for you are awesome! Now that’s worth a Hallelujah!

Deuteronomy 24:18 Always remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the LORD your God redeemed you from your slavery. That is why I have given you this command.

Psalm 107:2  Has the LORD redeemed you? Then speak out! Tell others he has redeemed you from your enemies.

Luke 1:68 Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, because He has visited and redeemed His people.

Psalm 78:35  Then they remembered that God was their rock, that God Most High was their redeemer.

Isaiah 48:17  This is what the LORD says— your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is good for you and leads you along the paths you should follow.

Isaiah 49:9  I will say to the prisoners, ‘Come out in freedom,’ and to those in darkness, ‘Come into the light.’ They will be my sheep, grazing in green pastures and on hills that were previously bare.