freedom!!

    In honor of the 4th of July, the day we celebrate the freedoms we enjoy as American citizens, I have decided to write about the freedom that Christ brings to those who choose to be pilgrims and foreigners in this life. (1 Peter 2:11). Four years ago, I knew nothing of this freedom which Christ sacrificed everything for. Galatians 5:1 says, "It was for freedom that Christ set us free". It is not in the death of Christ that we are ransomed but rather in His resurrection. He did what the Law could not do and ransomed us from the law of sin and death to the Law of Grace. (Romans 8). Because of the Law of Grace we can now join in agreement with the Spirit in crying out, "Abba Father!"

 

 

    For as Long as I can remember, I have been very aware of the freedoms we have as Americans as well as the price that is paid for those freedoms by brave men and women. My grandparents met in Italy during WWII. My grandmother and her family were part of the resistance and were in hiding from the Nazis. My grandfather was a Gunner in the U.S. Navy. Had brave men and women not fought and even given their lives for the freedom of others, my grandmother would have been found by the Nazis and killed. I owe my very life to the men and women who fought in WWII.

 

 

    I was raised to believe that I owed my country a debt. Even more, I owed a debt to the service men and women who protected my freedom when I could not. When I turned 18 I joined the Navy to repay that debt. I joined to fight and protect the freedom of the ones who had gone before and those who would come later. There is a saying " All gave some, some gave all." that is still true today. The fact of the matter is that freedom isn't free. The price of freedom is paid with blood.

    There is another freedom that I knew nothing of until four years ago. This is a divine freedom that only God can give. It is a freedom that allows us to forgive knowing that we have a righteous Judge who has seen and taken account. It is the freedom to let go because He never will. It is the freedom to learn from Him how to take His yoke of meekness. It is the freedom to say you have wronged me and I have every right to exact vengeance on you but for your good I will restrain. It is the freedom that we see Christ use on the cross when He had all right and ability to pour out His wrath on us but instead He restrained Himself and took our punishment on Himself.

 

  On March 24th, 2009 I walked through the doors of Mercy Ministries. I was full of hatred, bitterness, and unforgiveness. I was a self harming emotional drinker. For as far back as I could remember I was depressed and tormented by thoughts of suicide. I had PTSD as well as 4 other mental diagnosis. Every time I would reach out for help I got a new disorder and they tried to give me another kind of pill. Really, I didn't think that I would ever be free. There was no hope. The thing is, I was wrong.

    Earlier I said that the price of freedom is paid with blood. When I was at Mercy I learned just how true that statement is. Jesus paid the price for my freedom with His blood.

Isaiah 53:3-5 says, "He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed."

     I learned at Mercy that someone had already paid the price for my freedom. I didn't have to live as a slave anymore. I was free. "All gave some, some gave all". At Mercy I learned that Christ gave all. My blood can't do what Christ's blood already did. But I can give my all by taking the freedom that He has given me and sharing it with others. I'm not an addict. I'm not a self harmer. I don't have PTSD. I am more alive than I ever thought possible and I am the happiest person I know. It is for freedom that Christ set us free. Let the bells of freedom ring for we have been emancipated from the law of sin and death, thanks be to God for Christ Jesus our Lord!

 

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