Chains

The image which first came to mind was Hebrews 12:1 where I am running in the race. Think of the Olympic athletes who run which are stripped down, practically to the bare nothing. The less on, the better. So here I am in life racing...racing...racing...then I notice something which I believe I "must" have. It's a small circular thing, like a link. Wow! If I get just a few more I'll be able to make a connected circle which I could then wear, rather than carry, and just think how much easier that would be! Slowly and ever so carefully, the chain becomes longer and much heavier. But I'm still running....it's just now I'm not running quite so fast. But, I'm feeling great! There really isn't a problem here at all. (So I think.) Eventually, I become bowed down from the weight of the chains and I am barely walking, much less running.

The chain, or link, is anything I hold onto that ends up holding me. I firmly believe that we, as Christians just swat at our chains, kind of like the way we might swat at a gnat and therefore, remain enslaved in our chains. Let's face it, our chains are created by us for our protection and comfort. But instead the chains become our prison and we no longer control them, they control us.

Discipline and determination are important factors when it comes to opening our life to the supernatural power of God. He provides the divine dynamite to blow open every single link in all of our chains! I firmly believe that every link in our chain is related to the "thing" in our life which takes up a higher position than God. Every link is something we feel we must have. And let's not fool ourselves in that every link in the chain, which a believer wears, is a tremendous source of pride for the enemy. Why? Because the enemy cannot enter a believer! We are sealed by the Holy Spirit of God (Eph 1:13-14). Those chains are his attempt at leading us.

My heart overflows with thankfulness and gratitude to God for forgiveness of sin!! I am constantly reminded that virtually anything which cheats me of what God has for me could be considered sin. I have learned (always, it seems, the hard way) that if I don't listen to God and obey in the early stages...the longer I wait...tiptoeing around...the less discernment and strength I have. I also know for a fact that God will not release me from anything that has enslaved me until I've come to the mind of Christ in the matter. I have to adopt the mind of Christ in the matter of whatever has enslaved me. The process of applying God's Truth to the matter is what brings the Cross between me and my "chains." You see, once the mind of Christ has taken over, the power of the chains is broken and the premises begin to be evacuated.

I do believe that this chapter so far has been my favorite. Probably because I love the feel of those chains falling off me! My unsaved friends cannot understand and comprehend how burdened down they are. How they are so....not free. "But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised" (1 Corinthians 2:14).

I'll leave you with this verse: "But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called "Today," so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin" (Hebrews 3:13).