Freed From My Chains ~ Sunday Devotion
Truly I am your servant, Lord; I serve you just as my mother did; you have freed me from my chains. Psalm 116:16 (NIV)
I can’t say it often enough: The Lord can set you free!
I used phrases like bound up, tied up, consumed with, distracted by, chained by when I talked about worries related to my weight and self-image. I was in a prison of my own making. For sure, words from my mom at an early age and discussions with my peers as I got older contributed to my focus on weight. I mean, isn’t our weight what we women are supposed to always be watching, and aren’t we supposed to try to make our bodies smaller? These words and ideas from others added to my insecurities, but I allowed them to take root in my mind and to hold me captive. I spent years in my chains of obsession about my weight.
The Lord wants to set you free. He broke the chains of sin and death, so they wouldn’t have a hold on you and me. And yet, that’s exactly where many of us find ourselves. We become chained to the pursuit of weight loss. But we don’t have to stay that way.
At some point my chains became my identity. But God had a greater purpose for my life and He has purpose for you too. Share on XAt some point, we took the key to those chains and chose to stay in them. Oh, it wasn’t a conscious choice. It couldn’t have been, could it? Who would want to stay in bondage of any kind? Yet, sometimes I feared that if I couldn’t hide behind this worry, what would I do? What would I talk about with my friends if we weren’t loathing how we looked and what diet we would try next? If I didn’t have an excuse to shrink into the background, how was I supposed to show up and live, truly live, my life? At some point, I found some identity in this struggle. Allowing the Lord to free me from my chains took courage, but He was ready to take my hand and lead me out of my darkness and into His wonderful light.
A part of this verse I don’t want to overlook is “I serve you just as my mother did.” The way we live our lives matters. It matters because it impacts those who are watching. Our children and our grandchildren. Other girls. Young girls and adult women. Let’s live in freedom and show them that it’s possible, that they were made for more! I don’t want any woman to miss out on the abundant life God has for her to live. Will you join me in changing the landscape and becoming an example of what it looks like to live fit and free?
Action Step: Are you seeking freedom? Have you found some weird comfort in staying in your chains? Have courage. The Lord wants to free you from those chains and help you step into your life. Think about the legacy you’re leaving. Be the change. Will you embrace your age and stage of life today? The choice is yours. Freedom is available to you.
Happy Sunday!
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