There are many things we must learn from our past failures; however, once you have learned those lessons, it is crucial that you do not keep mulling over the mistakes. It will keep you stuck in bondage even though Christ has done everything needed to bring you freedom. Again, we must use our past to learn from our mistakes and bring wisdom to our present day or we will just keep making the same mistakes over and over. The problem comes when we keep stabbing ourselves with those mistakes or when we shackle ourselves to the wrong-doing and allow it to haunt our daily lives and disrupt our future.
The chains of our past are difficult to lay down. It is interesting to me how so many people are walking around feeling like they are in bondage though they are not. It is like taking someone who has been in chains since they were very young, then after 30 years, taking the chains off and telling them that they are free. They do not even know what that means and they definitely do not know how to act. I was watching an old movie on television the other night--you know those movies that come on so late and you should go to sleep but it is just interesting enough to keep you on the couch. It was a movie about an old prisoner who was supposed to serve 50 years for his crime. He was so comfortable in his jail that he had now been there for 56 years and the new warden wanted to set him free. This prisoner was so scared and did not want to go. He would rather stay put with the chains and the comfort of the known obstacles than face freedom and the unknown things it may bring.
If you have surrendered your life to Christ then you have been set free and do not need to stay in your jail. Maybe you have even been forced to leave your jail but still feel the weight of your chains. It is a façade! Jesus made it very clear what His purposes were in His coming to this earth as a man. There is no amount of stubbornness, habitual living, memories, evil deeds, prideful moments, back stabbings, criminal activity, hurtful words, or mistakes made that can derail the purpose or vanquish the promises that God has put in place by sending His son Jesus Christ to love you. He who Christ has set free is free indeed!
Luke 4:16-21
He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
"The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to release the oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."
Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."
Maybe you are reading this devotional and you have never been set free. If you are in this jail and have chains wrapped round your heart and mind that are constricting you from becoming all that God has planned for your life- today is the day for you to be set free. Run to Him! Stop what you are doing and fall to your knees and surrender! There is a peace for that storm, healing for those wounds, and a most importantly, a purpose for your life. I encourage you to ask the Lord to be your Savior and allow Him to be your Lord. He will change the way you look at everything that you touch and give you a new perspective about where you have been, where you are at, and what is ahead in the future. He truly loves you!
God Bless
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