Word to Live by // An AMH Series
We are all born for freedom. That’s why it’s natural for us to want to step into adulthood full speed ahead, to want to have authority figures move to the sidelines so we can become all our hearts are longing for us to become. It’s the reason that as kids we start to test limits. We somehow know we were born to walk in freedom.
God Himself deemed it to be important. And what we do with it matters.
“You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love” (Galatians 5:13).
Freedom, just for the sake of freedom, will breed rebellion in our hearts. Freedom for the sake of seeking the heart of God though, breeds life; it causes us to experience the love of God in a pure way.
Oftentimes, the word freedom is used in regards to the opportunities given or not given by those in authority over us; however, rather than going into lengthy blog on the importance of rules or how having people in authority over us can a good thing, I want to take a moment to instead focus in on the freedom I find the most valuable…the freedom we give ourselves.
Prisoners of our own minds
You see, I think for a lot of us, our brain is often the greatest prison we will ever experience. It has the ability to cause us to believe things about life, God, and ourselves, that may not even be true, yet these “truths” often influence every aspect of the decisions we make…. for better or for worse.
The freedom to choose how we think is a beautiful yet powerful gift God has given us. After all, I can recall there were two ways I could obey my mom when I did my chores (because you’d better believe my mom was going to make me get them done). I could do them with a good attitude or a bad attitude. It was the one part of my life it seemed she could not control. Yes, even as a child I knew there was one area I was free – my mind.
As we grow up, that freedom can actually imprison us. We accidentally end up with some thought patterns God never meant for us to develop. We may have picked up some faulty information somewhere along the road, we may believe something that simply is not true.
You’re fat. You’re a mistake. You’re dumb. You’re useless. You’re not pretty enough.
When we believe lies about ourselves, we are really believing a lie about God. We are saying that He is not good. That He doesn’t have a plan or a purpose for our lives.
We end up operating from that point of view, and we are held captive by the lies. We may be fully grown, we may have careers and spouses, but we are still not free. Our minds are not our own. We have surrendered our freedom to lies, and for many of us, we may not even know it.
He holds the key
“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed (John 8:36).”
The good news is, God wants you to be free! He wants your mind to be released from all of those things you may be believing about yourself and God which cause you to see things in a tainted way. He wants you to experience true freedom, the freedom only He can offer you. If it sounds like this is becoming a sales pitch, it’s only because I’ve tasted this freedom and it was life changing for me!
I wish I could tell you there is a one-size fits all solution to perfect freedom of the brain. But honestly, I have not yet found it. Instead, I think there a few steps to set you in the right direction.
First, realize and admit to yourself that the things you’ve always considered to be factual (you’re fat… you’re a mistake… you’re dumb… you’re useless… you’re not pretty enough…) just may not be true.
Second, take it to God in prayer and open the Bible to ask God what He means when He says you were made in His image.
Third, if you have one, turn to a trusted leader in your life, someone you respect. If you do not have one, reach out to our Across My Heart team, we’d love to chat. Oftentimes, it’s our thoughts that go unvoiced that can do the most damage; when we share them with someone full of wisdom, they may be able to speak truth into the areas where we are believing lies.
Getting over years of unhealthy thoughts is not an easy process, but as you submit to God, I promise you’ll find there is so much freedom. For me, it was a freedom I never knew would be possible; and so that’s my prayer for you as well, that you’d experience true freedom, that you’d have hope for your future!
