I have a big, black purse that seems to swallow up everything that goes into it. My family calls it "the black hole." One of the most difficult things to find in it are my keys. There have been many times I have had to dump everything out and sort through all the junk in order to find them. It is always a desperate search because without my keys, I can't get anywhere. Some of the keys to life have been just as hidden and hard to find. I've had to dump everything out and sift through the mess to find them. The search is always worth the effort, though. Today, I'll share the first key. This is the key to real, lasting and true freedom...and who doesn't want that door unlocked? How many of us consider ourselves free, but are being bound by the invisible yoke of slavery? It all depends on where you are looking for freedom. Here are some questions to determine where you might be looking and what chains may have you bound: 1) Is your self-worth tied to what others say about you? 2) Are you living with hurt, bitterness and unforgiveness in your heart? 3) Do you make decisions based on your feelings? 4) Does your performance/accomplishment make you feel valuable and good about yourself? These are just a few of the things that can entangle us. If you aren't sure whether you may be enslaved to any of these or something else, pray and ask God to open your eyes to the hidden places of bondage in your heart and mind. If you still aren't certain, you can ask your spouse or a close friend to be honest with you...they'll let you know. Be prepared, it is hard to have our weaknesses exposed, but it is the first step in the key to freedom. There is a key to a glorious life that is not controlled by any of these things. It is the secret that I have had to learn. It is a key that we have all been given...we only have to choose whether we will use it or not. The secret is this: The more you know and are surrendered to God, the more freedom you will experience. I used to think it was the opposite...that I would be stifled, held down by rules and not able to have any fun if I surrendered everything. That is perhaps the biggest lie that keeps us from using our most important key...pursuing a deep, intimate relationship with the One who willingly paid the highest price for our freedom. It is in the pursuit of knowing Him and how He sees you...beautiful, unique, His beloved...that you will find the freedom you have been looking for. It rarely happens overnight, but if you start today; praying, reading and studying His Word, listening to His quiet whispers to your heart...you will be one step closer than you have been. We all have things from which we need to be set free. God so loves us that He sent His only Son to die for us to have real freedom from hurt, bitterness, unforgiveness, insecurity, fear of man, and a works-based, legalistic way of thinking and living. It is time to stop living blind and bound! It is time to reach your arms to heaven and shout the words in Galatians 5:1, "It is for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore stand firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery." So, dump out your life before God, let Him sift through the mess and help you find the key. After all, you have places to go!
Today, in my New Testament class, our professor was lecturing on the "Second Temple Times". These are the 400 years in between the Old Testament, that ends with the prophet Malachi and the beginning of the New Testament, where John the Baptist enters in the gospel of Matthew. Although these years were also known as the "silent years" and there may not have been any inspired Scripture written, God was anything but silent. As our class listened intently, my professor wove stories with intelligence and nuance of battles, kings, cruel leadership, corrupt priests, and destruction. Once the facts were laid out before us, he presented the purpose in looking at this time period. What may have seemed like just a bunch of historical facts and dates were really God's brushstrokes of Providence and Sovereignty. Every cultural, political and historical detail in those silent years, was part of God's most amazing plan for grace that the world has ever known! After leaving class, I was pondering all I'd heard. I began to feel that the Holy Spirit was pressing more into my mind. I started thinking about the apparent "silence" of God in those years. Surely, God's people wondered why He wasn't speaking. Had He forgotten them? Did He not realize that they were suffering under cruel leadership? It must have seemed like He had turned His face from them...while all the time, He was working all things on their behalf. In the silence, He was working. He was bringing them more than the political, military rescue they wanted. He was bringing them a soul rescue. The same silence came between the horrible cruelty of the Crucifixion on Friday and the miraculous Resurrection on Sunday. The disciples thought all was lost in that silence. They believed that all that they had hoped for in Jesus was gone. In the silence, God was working. Do you feel like God has forgotten you? Do you wonder why He is not answering? Do you think that He does not see your suffering? Oh my precious, let these words be an encouragement to you. The bridge between seeing and believing is trust. None of us can see beyond where we are right now, but if you trust in Him, you can believe that He has your future. In the silence, He is working.
"I lift up my eyes to the hills-where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth." ~Psalm 121:1-2
I drove down the two lane, lonely road this morning. My mood matched the sky above...cloudy and gray. My heart was heavy from the recent conversations with friends who are in a difficult season right now. The precious faces of the ones I love and had been praying for were filling my thoughts and blurring my mind with sorrow. Several times this week, my gracious God had brought Psalm 121:1-2 to my attention. Perhaps it was with that in mind that I instinctively looked up at the sky. It was in that moment that God painted a beautiful picture for me. The clouds parted and in a moment, a small patch of blue sky appeared amongst the gray. I felt His Spirit whisper, "I am your blue sky." My heart melted and I smiled saying back to Him, "Yes, God, You ARE my blue sky!" At that moment, my ipod began to play over the radio, Tenth Avenue North's song, "Strong Enough to Save". I heard the words clearly as I watched the clouds part..."And he'll break open the skies to save those who cry out His Name. The One the wind and the waves obey, He's strong enough to save you..."
