Free

A few months ago I asked Jesus to show me things that He wants me to work on. Y'all, let me tell you, that if you ask that, you better be ready for Him to show you. It has not been an easy journey because it's painful when I am convicted. It's also uncomfortable because The Loving God is pointing out my flaws in a sense. I've struggled with many burdens and I've committed numerous "felonies," if you will, in the eyes of God. Things I am not proud of in the least. Things I'm embarrassed by. Things I don't want anyone to know because I'm afraid of how people's opinions would change about me. And therein lies the problem.

I was chatting with one of my friends and she mentioned that sharing your struggles with sin is a necessity to overcome them. It is Biblical that we are stronger together (Ecclesiastes 4:9). It is Biblical that we are to keep each other accountable for our actions (Luke 17:3). It is Biblical that we confess our sins to each other (James 5:16). So why is it so hard to do it?

The answer is the devil. If you don't know it already, hear it now. The devil has NOTHING good in store for you and I. He wants me to keep my sins hidden away so he can keep using them to chain me down. He will keep whispering the lies in my head, "you can't escape this, you can't walk away from this. If people found out, you would be frowned upon and labeled." So I don't share, I keep them tucked away. Until now.

Here's a message for you devil. I'm done listening to your lies. I believe in Jesus Christ, His birth, His death, and His resurrection. I believe in the power of Jesus' blood and because of this choice, His blood has wiped away ALL of my sins. You're right, I will continue to sin and people may look at me differently. But God's mercies are new for every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23). He gives me many chances and I WILL keep trying again. He hasn't given up on me and I'm not going to either. I am dying to myself, letting go of these chains that I've allowed you to manipulate and weigh me down. I give Jesus control. I give Jesus my fear. I give Jesus my anxiety. I give Jesus my lust. I give Jesus my stress. I give Jesus my pride. I give Jesus my anger. I give Jesus my shame. I will no longer be burdened by these things or allow you to use them to make me stumble. I know who God is and because I know who He is, I know who I am. God only has good things in store for me. If not on earth, in heaven. My soul is safe because of Jesus Christ and NOTHING you say will change that. Things chains you have wrapped around me, Jesus has broken by His power. He died on the cross to take these things from me, and He said, "it is finished." And so it is, I am free.

Y'all, we are not meant to live life on our own. We need Jesus first, and we need others. It's scary to let other people in, but don't let satan use your fear to keep you from doing it. Whatever the devil is trying to keep you burdened with and chained too, let Jesus have it. Let Him set you free from the devil's grasp today and when tomorrow is today, do it again, and again, and again. It's a daily surrender; a daily death. One day, when you see His glory, you'll see why it was worth it.