Claiming Completion or Captivity: the Choice Before Us
Sometimes, the answer we are longing for is in the change we are resisting.
From a whisper to a dream
May we not resist the breaking
to flourish into the more of the stream.
“A river must break to form channels to give life to other barren lands.” ~ Author unknown (but shared to me by a sweet friend)
Change is not easy…
While change is normal, it is often uncomfortable and challenging. Therefore, our perception matters and our focus does too. We are not meant to stay the same. Evolving and growing is a beautiful gift. That is also true with relationships too.
We must not stay in our Egypt when God calls us out. We must also not go back…
In Exodus, we read the promises of deliverance to the Israelites and how Moses was called by God to lead them from their bondage in Egypt. Freedom! It was their way from slavery into sonship. Yet, as we read on, we see their captivity consumed them.
Pastor Chris Morante profoundly shared it like this, “Deliverance gets you out of Egypt but discipleship get Egypt out of you.”
We all can fall into the same traps of sin and idolatry. We can easily have an issue of “Egypt” becoming stuck in the past instead of the change God is calling us to. God’s desire is not for us to experience slavery to anything or anyone. There is freedom in the presence of Jesus.
What are we not walking in freedom from? Are we captive to anything still?
After Jesus’ baptism, the heavens opened and anointing of Holy Spirit came. After this, where did Jesus go? He went into the wilderness for 40 days where He was tempted by the devil. Through this account in Matthew 4:1-11, Jesus shows us what to do when we are tempted by anything including the temptation to resist change and move forward.
“Jesus said to him, ‘Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’ Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.” (Matthew 4:10-11)
Where the Israelites failed, Jesus succeeded. Thus, we are given a beautiful model to lean into.
When we accept Jesus into our hearts, we have His power within us too. He's alive. We don't need to have the answers to questions to have hope. He is our hope. “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in humans.” (Psalm 118:8)
He is unwavering hope even when others fail us. He is our refuge and our firm foundation on which we stand…even when standing calls us to change.
“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt to be your God. I am the Lord your God.’ ” (Numbers 15:41)
God delivers. Let’s not settle for half freedom when Jesus defeated it all. God does not take us so far to leave us behind.
He is with us. “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).” (Matthew 1:23)
This becomes not just a one time a year story but instead a constant, ever-present truth.
As time continues to tick, most aspect of life change, some even fade. While this is usually associated with negativity, recently I am being reminded of the reverse effect too. Change does not equate to bad when we do it in step with God, even if we are being pulled out of a rocky spot or pit. I’ve been in spaces like this before due to my own sin, due to unknown causes and even recently due to a loved one’s wrong choices. Change is often what brings the new view and perspective. Yet for many of us we become so comfortable with “good enough” or “what was” that we remain in the pit itself, maybe even decorating and designing it as our home, as if it was where we were meant to stay.
God has immeasurably more.
“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”(Ephesians 3:20-21)
We don’t need to design our pits to stay, creating comfort in spaces not good for us. Sometimes, in our furnishing of the fallen places we forget we have even fallen. We forget that we are indeed in a pit because we have cushioned it with frills and excuses, blinding us from truth.
Here is the thing. God is with us and He will guide us out but often the first thing we need to do is being overlooked. We need to look up. Time can make us forget we are in a pit until we look up.
Recognize where you are. Call it what it is. Look up friend, look up because even when we forget, wrongly reframe or even decorate the bad, God is good. He is our way out but we need to look up. He will provide step by step out to get out, carrying us through.
Jesus did not die on the cross for our sins for us to remain slaves to them and in the pits.
Look up friends. From whatever and wherever you are today, look up. God is with you and He has more. Treasure the old, welcome the new and remember change can be good. God does not leave not us behind but He may ask us to leave behind what once was… even if we once thought it was good.
Look up and stop decorating the spaces where you are not meant to stay.
So what can we do to practically live like this? Tell the truth. Yes, like learning when we were young… tell the truth.
Don’t hide the hard. Tell the truth about it.
Tell God about it. Confess it to others too when prompted to.
“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” (James 5:16)
Why is it so hard to tell the truth? Why is it often easier to cling to the stinging I lies instead? It reminds me this…
I once held a bee in my hand and ran to my mother screaming who probably wanted to scream too, but asked me what everyone wondered. Why was I holding the bee in my hand and not letting go? I was thinking about this recently and how often we do this in life. Maybe it is not with a literal bee, but how often do we hold onto something instead of letting it go. I knew the bee could sting me and as much as I wanted to believe I was a flower and it wouldn’t…
I remember being afraid of letting it go too, reflecting to myself, “What if it hurt on the way out? What if it hurt me when I released it?”
Like the bee, letting it go may have the potential to hurt on the way out, but holding it in often hurts us more. There is freedom though.
Let it go. Lift it up. Give it to God.
Do what He guides you to do and listen to what He wants you to know.
The Art of a Messy House reflection: What are we holding onto that we know we need to let go of? Are we holding onto something that is hurting us or has great potential to hurt us? Do we keep back from telling the truth because of this too?
We do not need to hide what is hard from God. Call it what it is. Talk to God about it. We need to face it and teach others what truth telling looks like, because anticipation is often far worse. Communicating the hard stuff is where a lot of times avoidance or excuses come. But the truth is… Having the hard, challenging conversations will help to build healthy relationships while avoiding the challenging conversations will create challenging relationships. Therefore, we must be intentional in our truth telling.
With all relationships, it really comes down to intentionality because life can get really busy, but we choose what we use that time for. Time can be a thief or it can be a gift, but we make the choice.
So what keeps us from telling the truth?
I’d say some things, or deceptions include…
shame
guilt
pride
the reaction of others
the lack of others doing it (Hey, let’s all be leaders in this and rise up!) …
the comparison or push to just excuse it is being “not as bad as others”
the fact that it opens the door for more truth…
Our truth telling gives agency for others to do the same, and that is a blessing.
In our own strength, it is so much easier to hide, but the beautiful and powerful truth is we don’t need to do it in our strength. God is greater than the very pull trying to keep us from telling the truth, from the change, or doing what we need to do or say.
There is freedom in truth. The cushioned gray areas of life are often what the enemy uses to divide and even justify things like not calling something what it is.
There is freedom in truth. Jesus is.
the Way
the Truth
the Life
“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)
He is where life is found.
There is a cost but the cost is worth it to walk in truth.
There is often a breaking before rebirth.
So what will help us tell the truth?
Love. God is love. Look to love Himself.
He will guide and even provide the words. Often, all we need to do is listen and take that step carried by His strength. He will guide our paths and provide community to help do so too. Pray for community. Pray for those who will come alongside and spur you on.
“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds,”(Hebrews 10:24)
“Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.” (Ephesians 4:15)
Pay attention of what and who pulls you from the Lord and doing what is right. Ask God to clean up the things in your life that are not of Him. Don’t run from the change or the rivers instead pray and trust, allowing God to uproot what needs to be removed in order to flourish.
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.” (James 1:2-4)
“A river cuts through rock not because of its power but because of its perseverance.” ~ James N. Watkins
And the good news is… love perseveres because His love cannot fail.
Dear God,
Create in us a pure heart Lord. Help us be people of integrity. Open our eyes and cleanse our hearts. I pray against shame today. We come to You with it all, even what we have felt ashamed of. There are no secrets with You Lord. You know everything and still You love us and You help us turn from those things that are not good for us. Speak to us about what we need to know about this and what You would have us do. Help us stay alert. Open our eyes. If shame is holding down any eyes, open their eyes to see clearly. “Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.” (Psalm 51:2, 10-12) I pray today we would not resist the change You are doing but instead embrace it, walking in step with You always. We give You all the glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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