Scripture

He led them from the darkness and deepest gloom; He snapped their chains.

~Psalm 107:14, NLT

Quote

There is power in the name of Jesus:
To break every chain, break every chain, break every chain!

~Will Reagan

I don’t really understand it, but the older I get, the more claustrophobic I become. I don’t like tight places. I get uneasy in a traffic jam or a parking deck. I long for the wide open spaces. I had to go to Hartselle for something last Friday and the traffic was horrible. I was heading out to Keith’s shop and when I got out into the country, I breathed a sigh of relief. I love the open spaces. I love freedom. Life in a prison cell is not appealing to me and neither is the thought of hand cuffs or shackles. We’ve all seen the action movies where the hero is wearing a watch that has a laser inside and he cuts through the chains and frees himself but in reality, it doesn’t work that way. Those who are bound and shackled have no hope a part from intervention. The first mistake our present culture is making is to deny the presence of sin and evil. Ironically, they are bound by something they do not believe exist. Sin enslaved, it binds and it shackles. It restricts our freedom and it keeps us from realizing our intended purpose. When we accept Jesus as our Savior and LORD, He liberates us from all these things that have bound us. He literally breaks the chains or the cords of sin and death that bind us.

We usually think of this in terms of Regeneration or conversion but Augustine saw this same process in sanctification. One by one, Jesus breaks the chains. In other words we experience more and more freedom as we follow Christ. Every day we see some cord snapped as we break out of the clay bodies into a world of true freedom. God’s grace is incredible. Forty years ago, I preached short sermons so I would not miss the NFL 12:15 kickoff. Trust me, the LORD has snapped that cord. I don’t rush through worship to watch TV, let alone an NFL game. I do look forward to lunch with my family but then it is time for rest. One by one God takes our little pathetic idols, when we are ready to give them to Him, and he drops them to the ground and then takes his omnipotent foot and crushes them into dust. Not long afterwards, we are thinking, “Why did I love that garbage in the first place?” Don’t beat yourself up, it is a part of the process. It is a long way from Adam to Christ: we don’t get there over night and the idols are not going to make it.

Extra

I got done with my devotional reading and thought Wow! I never finish this soon. What did I forget to do? Oh, yeah, I forgot to post the blog. Better late than never I hope!

We finished with VBS and Youth last night. We had 54 young people present. Doug lead the praise and worship and Josh brought the message. Those kids were singing and I was impressed. I know Josh is tired from doing two a days. We are thankful for our leadership and our kids. Thanks also the adults who provided super: we had plenty.

Saw a quote yesterday by George McDonald Frazier…The two pillars of political correctness are: willful ignorance and steadfast refusal to face the truth.