Look Alive, Sis! 7 Days to Awaken Your Sober MindSýnishorn

Made For Freedom

I fell onto the sofa after a full day of lunch making, volunteering, grocery shopping, carpool driving, soccer shuttling, and dinner prep. My hubby was gone to a meeting, and I was ready to chill. After all, I’ve earned it. I’ve set a glass of wine on the end table—as if I’ll stop at one glass. But I have the quiet comfort of knowing that the fresh bottle is in the fridge door. Grabbing the remote, I click on my favorite show and settle in for “me time.” (Because it’s my “reward,” remember?) I kept telling myself I’m living in freedom, but there’s a part of me that knows I’m not.

Because I was functioning on autopilot, I wasn’t always being intentional about how I want to show up in the world. Honestly, I was having a hard time seeing past what was right in front of me. Throughout the day, as the clock ticked toward wine o’clock, the good intentions from midmorning had evaporated.

After a day of eating kale and sweating through a hard workout, I was pouring every saved or burned calorie, and more, straight down my throat.

Night after night, I’d been chasing a fleeting feeling, trying to satisfy my desires.

And, frankly, I was weary of repeating this cycle that felt more like bondage than freedom.

Now fast-forward. It’s been another full day, but now I’m a few years into an alcohol-free lifestyle, a personal choice I decided to make for countless reasons. It hasn’t always been easy but always worth it.

For starters, I woke up from a full night’s sleep feeling well rested…the shame and regret don’t plague me any longer.

I was clear-minded enough to want to use what I’ve been given to impact the world for good—and I actually seized an opportunity to do it by “looking alive” in my own life first!

So let’s break it down. For years I’d convinced myself that I was in control. That everyone was drinking like I was. That I deserved it. That I was free. But the part of me that so desperately wanted to believe that wasn’t the clear-minded part. It was the cloudy part that was being bullied by my desires. And when I was finally able to see clearly, free from the haze, I was able to recognize the trap I had been caught in and what freedom was.

Today I’m clear-minded not just for the first dozen or so hours of my day. I’m in my right (sound) mind for all of them. I’m able to be present for myself and others. I feel good. I make choices from a place of freedom and not bondage.

What choices are you making today that lead you to more freedom? How does listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit bring you closer to resting in God’s presence?