Maneuvers - No. 52
This Freedom
is Yours
What do you want to be free from? What is that one thing you wish you could break away from completely, friend?
Is it a secret habit? Insecurity? Fears? Past shame or regret? External pressures? Physical pains? Hurtful relationships?
We all have something (or many things) we wish we were free of. But where does real freedom come from?
This world tries to convince us that it has the answer. “Try this new diet!” “Take my new course!” “Buy this new machine!” “Enjoy this new experience!”
It never ends.
Or the world tells us to give up. To get used to the way things are… because they’ll never change. We will never change.
But what if the answer were much, much simpler (and full of hope)?
The apostle Paul told the Corinthian Christians this: “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (2 Corinthians 3:17, ESV).
The world is wrong, friend; freedom isn’t some unattainable dream. It’s closer than we ever thought possible. In fact, Jesus tells us it’s already ours in his name.
Let’s discover this freedom, through Holy Spirit, together. His words for us today have the power to break even the heaviest of chains.
01.
The Message
“He is sweeping across the land. He is resting here. He makes your home his home–your spirit united with his–and invites you to your true home. Come, come into the deep home of your heart where freedom resides. Freedom from all connections that are not of me. Freedom comes where the Spirit resides. For where the Spirit resides, there is love. And love holds all things and makes a way for all things, as I say, in my Son’s name.
“I withhold from you no secrets about how to attain freedom; it is for you to enjoy. You inhabit freedom in your life with me, and you can experience it in many capacities. One way is through your mind–how you think and make decisions, how you spend your time and with whom you spend it; what you do in the world and how you interact with people. To experience freedom, let me into your mind completely–open to my word to receive my truth; open to hear the stories of life; open to receive the message of captivity ending–my Son giving all for you. Your mind is set free when his mind becomes your mind–when you let his thoughts be your thoughts, when you let your mind be captivated by his goodness, his love for you. Let your mind contemplate the sacrifice He made. How can you understand such love? How can you be free in your mind if you do not?
“Also, be free in your heart. Let freedom tear through the hard places. Let freedom break open the prison of self-focus. Let freedom walk through the desert with you and show you what is possible, where living streams wash through without end. Let freedom feed you, sustain you, equip you, restore you. Let freedom hold your hand and make your burden light. You are capable of anything in my name–when the Spirit leads you and fills you. Feel him now. Feel freedom now. Abide in the gift I give you–freedom from debilitating self-consciousness, freedom from insecurity, freedom from fear, freedom from comparison, freedom from the lie of lack, freedom from believing you must do everything on your own, that you have messed up your life, that there is no hope for you, that you are not loved, that I am not here.
“Be free in all things and in all capacities. And how? How do you experience freedom? Let my love enter you completely. Let my love be your guide, your protector, your first thing you think about in the morning, the last thing you remember at night. Let my love strengthen you, let my love bring you to your knees–the knees of a child with a Father who speaks life and walks life and breathes life. You are free now, if you want to be. Free, child, in all ways.”
02.
Listen
Sit back, close your eyes, and think about the words you just read. What parts of the message stand out to you the most? Let’s pull out our journals and a pen and respond to the Lord.
03.
Think
“Christ has set us free to live a free life. So take your stand! Never again let anyone put a harness of slavery on you” (Galatians 5:1, MSG).
1. In what areas of your life are you open to God’s love? And in what areas are you living life on your own?
2. What does freedom look like for you in those areas where you’re living on your own?
3. What practical steps is Holy Spirit leading you to take so you can walk in his freedom?
04.
Trust
As you read Holy Spirit’s wisdom regarding how to experience freedom, what did you feel, friend? We (Jennifer and Justin) felt buoyed with hope. After all, God’s love is how we experience freedom–freedom in all capacities. Freedom for our minds and our hearts. And his love is not only available to us, but it’s available in abundance.
Paul reminds of how nothing can separate us from God’s love: “And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow–not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below–indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39, NLT).
Isn’t that promise amazing? And yet, while God loves us with a fierce, abundant love, he does not force us into experiencing it or even acknowledging it. You see, even though Holy Spirit lives in us from the moment we first accept Christ in our hearts, we only experience the freedom he offers to the extent that we surrender, receive God’s love, and trust him completely.
So how do we do this? Let’s start by asking ourselves: Where am I not experiencing freedom in my life?
This can be a hard question to answer honestly. We get so used to coping with our sin–rather than surrendering it to Christ–that we stop seeing the ways in which we live enslaved.
So let’s dig deeper by asking ourselves: Do I live in fear? Do I feel insecure about who I am? Am I complacent? Am I self-righteous? Do I believe that I’m the savior, putting all my focus on following the rules and being “good” rather than simply loving God and worshiping him?
The best way to find out what freedom looks like in our lives–or how we’re enslaving ourselves–is to spend time in conversation with God.
Will you join us in putting aside some time today–even setting a timer for 5 minutes is a great place to start–and asking our Father these questions and waiting for his response?
After we’ve spent some time in his presence, waiting for him to speak, let’s pray…
05.
Pray
Father, I love how you love me, how you adore me, how you know when I sit and when I rise and when I speak. I love how your very Spirit lives in me. I love how you breathe hope and life and freedom into my heart.
Yet I confess to you that there are some areas of my life where I’m not experiencing your freedom. Search my heart, Father. Show me where those places are–where I’m living enslaved instead of living free.
Forgive me for trying to be “enough” on my own. I surrender to you every area of my heart where I’ve tried to be self-sufficient. Help me hear your voice, receive your love, and rely on your strength instead of my own.
I love you, Lord. You’re all I want.
In Jesus’ name, amen.
Waving the banner with you,
