Break Free and Live in TruthSample

What Freedom Looks Like

My dad had given my mom a parakeet when they got engaged. She named him Petey. She had grown to love the little green and yellow bird, especially since it was a gift from my dad.

One day my mom took Petey’s cage outside to clean it, and since I was just a toddler at the time, I came along. Mom walked back into the house for a brief moment to get something, and when she returned, the birdcage stood wide open and Petey was nowhere to be found.

For reasons unknown, I opened the cage while my mom was in the house. Petey saw his opportunity and flew away. I don’t remember letting Petey out of his cage. However, I do remember my mom’s reaction. She was crushed. Petey had been her beloved pet for seven years.

Many who live in bondage to the lies of this world feel as though they are trapped in a cage, unable to escape. The enemy’s cunning tactics of deception keep people blinded to the truth, and they no longer see freedom is an option.

When Jesus went to the cross, He not only died for our sins, but He also unlocked the prison doors that are associated with man’s bondage. Freedom is ours for the taking. But far too often the tight grip of fear never allows us to venture outside the cage.

Life outside our barred enclosure seems obscure and uncertain. Bondage is at least familiar and predictable. Freedom? What does that even look like? While I cannot tell you how freedom will look in your life, I can tell you how it looks like in mine.

Freedom means…

• No longer being controlled, manipulated, or influenced by the number on the scale.
• Seeing food as nourishment and fuel, not something to be controlled.
• Sitting down to a meal and being able to focus on friends, family, and fellowship rather than calories and fat grams.
• Looking into the mirror and seeing beauty, not flaws.
• Seeking to please and gain the approval of God, not man.
• Seeing people and the world around me through God’s eyes.
• Surrendering my broken dreams for God’s incredible adventures.
• Shining God’s light so others can find their way out of the darkness.
• Believing with all certainty God’s love is enough.
• Knowing God loves me just as I am—and that’s all that really matters.

Freedom is so much better than I could have ever hoped or dreamed. Perhaps those fifty plus years ago, when I was just a child, a primal instinct buried deep within told me the truth; life inside a cage is a poor way to live.

Friends, you and I were meant to be free. It’s time to step out of the cage, spread your wings, and never look back. “…where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (2 Corinthians 3:17).

“And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).

Personal Reflection

• What would you like your life to look like once you are free?
• What dreams would you like to go after and have fulfilled once you gain freedom?

Prayer

Lord, help me get to a place of complete freedom. Open the door and set me free. Thank you, Lord, for answered prayer. Amen.