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FREEDOM: Lived out FULLY
It has been nearly three years since we all stayed home and canceled everything momentarily —a brief week or two (or three) before life would be back to normal and we would have successfully flattened the curve. (Go us!)
But, that is surely not how things played out, and Covid was not the only difficult element in our lives over the past few years. Between George Floyd riots and subsequent curfews, the war between Russia and Ukraine that began a lengthy year ago, Queen Elizabeth’s death in September, recent earthquakes in Turkey & Syria and many other life-shaking events, our resilience has been heartily put to the test. (Let’s hear it for James 1 promises!)
While few of us were intimately involved in any of these incidents, we all lived our versions of MY LIFE 2.0 or 3.0—with adjusted schedules, modalities, plans and dreams, with cancelled parties, commencements, ceremonies, and showers. (Throwing an eco-friendly alternative to rice or your cap in the air simply isn’t as much fun over Zoom.)
In March 2023, we are walking in the bright light of a new day, complete with live events, real confetti, and time together with loved ones in the same room. But have we reentered life again? Just as God released Peter from his shackles in the prison with a whack on his side from an angel (Acts 12), we too are free to live fully once again. John chapter 8 records Jesus speaking to the crowd that had gathered. He said, “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” (John 8:36) Jesus states that we will be set free. From what? Sin. How? Through believing the truth about who Jesus is in relationship to the Father.
But are we behaving like we’re free? Are we throwing surprise parties for our friends or shackled to bad habits? Planning big (or small) adventures or simply numbing out? Have we gone back to more time with friends than with screens? More time in the gym than in the basement? More time walking through the woods than sitting on the sofa? (Perhaps some of us need a whack from an angel, as well.)
All too often we stay stuck in a rut—often without even realizing we’re doing so—and don’t enjoy the FREEDOM we’ve been given by Jesus himself. We stay still instead of going. We do the comfortable thing instead of the nerve-wrecking (and potentially really AMAZING!) thing. I challenge you: Break out of your ruts. Get out of your room. Go. Connect, play, run, smile, and live life fully. Because you CAN. The Son has set you free. Be FREE, indeed.
Reflect: What ruts have I fallen into over the past few years that I need to step out of? Are there any sin-ruts I need to break free from? Walk away from the shackles. They’re laying at your feet, not bound around your ankles any longer. Stand up. Walk away and LIVE in His FREEDOM.
-Laura Watkins
Professor of Communication
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