You’ve said it to someone, and I’m sure someone has said it to you: “You need to Let Go!” We know we are stuck, but letting go, releasing or forgiving is hard for so many reasons. The ministry and life of Christ finds its apex in offering you freedom…so if you are ready to move forward, tune into Monty’s teaching on Letting Go.
May God bless us with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships, so that we may live deep within our hearts.
May God bless us with anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that we may work for justice, freedom, and peace.
May God bless us with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, hunger, and war, so that we may reach out our hands to comfort them and turn their pain into joy.
And may God bless us with enough foolishness to believe that we can make a difference in this world, so that we can do what others claim cannot be done, to bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.
“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” ~Viktor E. Frankl
Frankl was an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist, but most notably he was a Holocaust survivor. His most well-known book, “Man’s Search For Meaning” records his existential journey to unearth hope in a hopeless environment in order to survive.
Some thoughts that come from that book:
“When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.”
“Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”
“But there was no need to be ashamed of tears, for tears bore witness that a man had the greatest of courage, the courage to suffer.”
“Love is the only way to grasp another human being in the innermost core of his personality. No one can become fully aware of the very essence of another human being unless he loves him. By his love he is enabled to see the essential traits and features in the beloved person; and even more, he sees that which is potential in him, which is not yet actualized but yet ought to be actualized. Furthermore, by his love, the loving person enables the beloved person to actualize these potentialities. By making him aware of what he can be and of what he should become, he makes these potentialities come true.”
“An abnormal reaction to an abnormal situation is normal behavior.”
“I do not forget any good deed done to me & I do not carry a grudge for a bad one.”
“Even though conditions such as lack of sleep, insufficient food and various mental stresses may suggest that the inmates were bound to react in certain ways, in the final analysis it becomes clear that the sort of person the prisoner became was the result of an inner decision, and not the result of camp influences alone.”
The space between is all about your choice.
The space between is the hard journey from where you started and where you want to be.
The space between is where life really happens, but we rush through missing the lessons intended to expand our experience on earth because we falsely believe life is somewhere other than where we are.
In order to absorb every atom of life and experience growth and freedom remember this trinity:
1. Slow Down: Technology and culture have increased our busyness and hurriedness. We are forever in a rush, angry, aggravated, stressed and undone. If you find yourself saying “I don’t have enough time” constantly, then you need to choose to slow down, budget your time and prioritize some time to simply “be.” We are a nation of “doers” and our over-doing it is robbing us of life. Give yourself permission this week to simply be with no agenda. Sit and read, or simply find a great coffee spot and drink slowly, savoring the flavor, aroma and experience.
2. Show compassion: When we show compassion to people, we are training our soul to see value in life. It is very hard to show compassion if you are in a hurry or constantly judging others. When you begin to love people, as they are, not as they should be, there is a shift that takes place inside of you. A shift that removes a jaded spirit and a judgmental spirit. We are never able to slow down nor show compassion when we try to rocket through the space between. Compassion adds beauty and instills hope and meaning. Hope and meaning are necessary ingredients in a full life.
3. Breathe deeply: To breathe deeply will cause you to slow down. Breath is life, and North American’s are the shallowest breathers on the planet. Breathe in slowly and deeply…as you hold your breath, thank God for life, yours and others. You will notice that your energy levels increase as you breathe deeply, and it causes you to slow down. As you slow down, you will finally be able to see that person who simply needs your compassion. Maybe it is just a hello, or a note or moving a garbage can…people need compassion the way we all need to breathe. As you breathe deeply remember that you are most like God when you extend love, grace and compassion to others.
4. Embrace the mystery of God: Stop trying to figure God out and all the mysteries of the universe. The moment you have God figured out, you no longer have God. Believe it or not, the mystery of God can help us through the space between far better than the best “pat answers” that so many religionists peddle. Somehow God is good, able and involved even when we suffer from a circumstance…How can that be? If we slow down, breathe, and practice compassion, God’s presence is manifest in such a way that answers pale in comparison to the God who is there.
Spend a little extra time this week enjoying the space between, because as Frankl said, In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.
Letting go…
Release…
Forgiveness…
These three daily practices are the gateway to freedom, but when tried, they have been found to be too hard for too many.
In Galatians 5:1 Paul states: “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” All of Christ’s work for people finds its apex in freedom. If this is true, then why are so many so stuck? We are stuck because we surrender to the wrong things.
We surrender to what other people want us to be and never become who we were created to be…
We surrender to the gods of materialism and debt cementing us in a place we don’t want to dwell…
We surrender to culture and become a copy of everyone else…
We surrender to someone else’s idea of success and spend our lives trying to gain what will never satisfy…
We surrender to the image police and never like ourselves…
Bob Dylan said it this way:
But you’re gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You’re gonna have to serve somebody
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you’re gonna have to serve somebody
We all have a master, the question that needs to be asked is, “Is your master immersing you in freedom or bondage?”
Jesus came and freed those who would follow Him and live His kingdom life, but as Paul notes, we can choose, as a follower of Christ, to allow other things to take control. If you are a Christian and find yourself stuck, shackled, or drowning, then you have allowed something else besides Christ to be master.
When we sink into depression because someone speaks negatively about us, we have just given that person power and control.
When we live in so much debt that we are sinking in it, we have allowed Chase or whatever financial institution to become our master.
When we hold onto anger, bitterness or unforgiveness, we have allowed our hurt or another person to have control.
Jesus wants everyone to experience a life of freedom, joy, and abundance, and this kind of life can only be experienced when we live the way Christ told us to live.
There are three freedom killers that everyone needs to be aware of: Expectations, Attachments and Control.
The Bar is Too High
When we have expectations that are too high, no one and nothing can get over the bar. When people fail to meet our expectations, we tend to get angry, judgmental or even depressed. Grace is needed for the person who sets the bar too high or they will never enjoy the beauty of relationships with others or God, as people rarely meet all expectations. Let go of unrealistic expectations…Release the high bar… Forgive the person, and begin to taste the sweetness of freedom.
Stuck Like Duct Tape
We all love duct tape, but when we are so attached to our desires that we hold tenaciously with a death grip, we get stuck like duct tape, and that is really stuck! Holding so tightly to “stuff & things” places those things in the drivers seat, and the sovereignty of God moves into the back seat. When God is not where we are primarily tethered, we lose our freedom and we wonder where God went. He is still there waiting for you to let go of your attachment to things. When we trust God and believe He is good, we release our expectations and our attachment to things…then we regain our freedom. If I do not trust God or believe He is good, I will continue to hold on tightly to what I want or what I expect from others.
Remote Control
Everyone is a control freak to some extent, but some people allow have an excessive need to control and it destroys their lives and the freedom Christ died for. We try to control our spouse, our kids, our boss, our government, our bank, and even our friends. “If they would just do what I say, then everything would be great!” is the conscious or subconscious life commandment. The need to control is insidious and it destroys freedom. It’s yoke crushes all who give in to it. Even when we realize that we can’t control the world, we still live and act as if we can, and this ruptures relationships, our soul and our faith. God alone is sovereign, I am not. The sooner I release my need to control…the sooner I forgive the ones I want to control…and the sooner I let go of my need to control, the sooner I swim in the ocean of God’s freedom.
Open Hands
The image of open palms is the image of freedom.
Open palms hold things loosely…
Open palms release the tight fist of control…
Open palms reveal trust..
Clenched fists are the image of bondage…holding tightly, judging harshly, and missing grace.
Everything Jesus did was to set you free. In John 8:36 we read: “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” The initial steps to regaining your freedom today is to choose in this moment to
Let Go of your impossible expectations…
Turn the control over to Christ…
Forgive yourself, your offenders and God…
Are you free?
Do you want to be free?
Then it’s time to unyoke from all the things that shackle you and trust God to unleash you into the life you were created for.