Freedom.
Are you feeling hesitant to form a deeper connection with God? Is it because you know that would require you to leave some things behind?
If you’re currently in this position, keep reading; this might help..
Starting a new walk with Jesus can be a difficult transition, to say the least. One of the hardest parts is shifting from being the only decision maker, to now having to consciously co-create and consult with God. This transition can be seen as or even feel restrictive, boring, or even like freedom is being taken away from us. I believe this feeling or mentality is what holds a lot of believers back in their faith. We simply don’t want to give up our freedom.
But what is freedom?
I asked a few people what their definition of freedom was and all the answers were similar, “being able to do whatever I want, whenever I want”. Which explains why going from living a carefree life to having a new set of guidelines can be, not only a bit jarring, but also kind of annoying..
One of the hardest parts for me was that, although I was making these changes, everyone else around me was still living their life with no “restrictions”. For me it felt like sitting at the window watching my friends play outside while being stuck indoors, not fun.
The truth is, I struggled a lot with this. I didn’t want to stop drinking or partying with my friends, I was having too much fun. I didn’t realize how bound I was, which made it that much harder to quit.
The Bible tells us that drinking, partying, premarital sex, etc. all lead to disaster, yet we STILL crave it. Why? Here are a few reasons you might be struggling to let go:
We want to remain in control. (Control our own actions).
We want to fit in and participate in what everyone else is doing.
We fear missing out or being excluded.
We don’t want to lose the people that are closely tied to things we have to release.
We have made these substances, habits, and activities part of our identity. (“Alcohol makes me fun”)
Most importantly, we’ve programmed ourselves to associate these things with freedom.
But my question to you is, are you even truly free if a substance or the desire for something has more power over you and your decision-making than fear of the Lord does?
Let me tell you a little about myself,
Growing up I did not like being told what to do. Even in my early adulthood I disliked anyone assuming I would do something simply because they told me to. Why? I grew up in a very strict household where I wasn’t allowed to do anything I wanted, which led to me only doing what I wanted once I was old enough to make my own decisions, of course. Sure, most of the decisions I made were wrong, but I made them all by myself and that’s all that mattered to me. I suffered the consequences time and time again, but I refused to let go of that independence. Why? I was having too much fun and I felt like I was in complete control of my life for once.
Now looking back on that time of my life I realize, I wasn’t free at all. I was making one bad decision after another and I wasn’t in control of anything. The substances I was prioritizing, the friendships I had, the things I wanted to do, all controlled me. I always knew what the right decision was because although I ran from God, he never left my side and he spoke to me every day. I chose to ignore his voice because it didn’t align with what I wanted to do at that time. That’s all it was, living in the moment, and suffering the consequences later.
This past year I decided to do a 3-month alcohol and weed cleanse. After I completed the weed cleanse, I indulged a few more times which led to me deciding to permanently quit that habit after 10 years. Drinking, on the other hand, is a very different story. For starters, the entire three months I couldn’t wait to be done so I could once again get drunk. Once that was done I immediately, I’m not kidding, IMMEDIATELY went to a happy hour with a friend and for obvious reasons, got so drunk I made a series of questionable decisions. Long story short, 75% of the times I drank after that cleanse I either ended up embarrassing myself, making poor decisions, or both. Ultimately I felt the Holy Spirit telling me it was time to stop fighting what I already knew, it was time to give up drinking for good. You’d think after all those experiences I’d be more than willing to quit, right? I was not. I loved drinking, more than most people, I’ve come to realize. I didn’t want to give that up, especially after having completed a three month cleanse which felt like an eternity. But after much practice ignoring the voice of God, I’ve learned it is best to listen to the Holy Spirit when guidance still comes in the form of a suggestion, so I listened. As I’m writing this I’m now 11 weeks sober!
Now that I live a life in Christ, the Holy Spirit is making choices with or for me. I can no longer make a decision only considering my wants or desires, I now have to think long term. And although I didn’t understand or even like it at first, I’m so grateful to know that it’s all for my good. How grateful am I that I have a God that cares about me so much that he won’t let me slip up for temporary fun because I’m too important to him, and so are you.
However, I know it can be overwhelming to make a shift, even a small one.
There are a few things I learned along the way that will hopefully help you on your journey..
Take inventory - of the people in your life, the things you do, how these things affect you, etc.
If you have to keep questioning or asking God if it’s okay for you to keep doing something or keep someone around, you probably shouldn’t be doing it.
If something is costing you peace of mind or deafening your connection to God, get rid of it. It’s not worth it.
I can bear witness that what God removes or calls us to let go of, he will replace, with something even better, EVERY TIME. If you’re scared to let go of something because you fear you’ll be left with nothing, remember, God can rebuild anything.
As adults there are many factors that affect our decision making. Bills, how much we get paid, daily responsibilities, all play a big part in how we make our choices. So it makes sense that we’d take advantage of every bit of “freedom” we can get.
A pastor once said, “We shouldn’t obey from a place of restriction, but of reverence and love.” He continued to say we should see the word of God as the treasure it is instead of just a set of commandments, “we obey what we treasure.” One last thing he said that greatly shifted my perspective was, “Obedience is how we handle freedom responsibly.”
When we mature in the spirit, we realize that true freedom can only come from walking with God and obeying him. He doesn’t expect us to be perfect but to be a good representation of Him and the gospel. We were meant to be a light in the world, not to join darkness because we want to fit in. We’re no longer slaves to earthly things and we’re free to make the right decisions. The more we obey God, the more he trusts us with. Most importantly, we know that since we’re living in alignment with God, once this temporary life is over, we’ll have eternal life with our Creator. That’s true freedom.
