How would you define truth in a world where so many versions of it exist?
I believe “we discover truth.” We may be verbally told the truth but until we know it for ourselves we can never really understand or even accept it as truth. And it is only on the discovery of truth we can then begin to live free.
My journey with freedom has definitely not been a one-step journey. It has taken shedding a lot of extra baggage on the way. Baggage piled on through childhood, adolescence and even adulthood. But One thing that has enabled a progressive journey especially more recently, is identifying those circumstances which have allowed the baggage to pile on and quickly shut the door on them. This means my posture has required change - mentally and emotionally. I had to learn mental and emotional postures that fought against the dead weight and allowed my mind to be renewed and continue being renewed every single day. Discerning truth starts with freeing your mind.
I have dealt with self-worthiness for a significant part of my life without knowing I was dealing with it. The contributing factors range from an over sheltered life to abusive relationships but the sustaining factors (reasons why the wounds have endured for longer) where down to the degree to which I allowed my mind to be renewed and see my life as brand new, see myself as forgiven, beloved and a treasured to behold. It was down to the degree to which I received my wholeness because the truth is that our wholeness is a gift, we either received it or reject it from the one who created us. It comes in a gift-wrap and the progressive journey with freedom is our deliberate attempt to mature. To see ourselves and accept ourselves for who we are and not what people would want us to be.
It is a struggle sometimes. I know some of it was for me because I refused to forgive myself for a lot of things that had happened to me growing up and things I had done that I knew were not right before God. I blamed myself and until I came to that point ready to receive love, ready to receive grace, my burden was an enormous weight of unforgiveness, rejection and pain, bitterness and ungratefulness. All these things made me defensive, very shy of my own opinions no matter how brilliant they were and easily intimidated. A huge need to self-preserve and protect myself from any kind of hurt developed.
I carried a heavy burden that was actually no longer mine to carry.
The thing with burdens is that sometimes we do not know we are carrying them until the weight is taken off and then suddenly we realise - OMG! Was I carrying all that?!
Or life just weighs you down so much and you know you need something more so you go searching which I think is probably the best way because you tend to be more grateful for what you receive on the journey – I longed for a sense of absolution in this big wide world that was giving me so many different versions of who I was. And in seeking the truth He began to shed light on my heart, into the hidden places, they places I had refused to look at because I thought they were too ugly or too painful, the places that were causing destructive patterns in my life. But before He did that He gave me courage to face them because He knew exactly how I would feel.
For me that is the mystery of the cross revealed. That he bore every possible contemplation of our emotions, of our physical body and mind and therefore knows at every single moment in time how we "feel" and has never once taken it for granted. Instead, His gives courage and sets an example of humility that we might follow so we might reign with Him in all things. So that we might walk and work in freedom.
It felt good to have come to that point of discovery. It had taken awhile to accept "truth" ultimately about myself.
The truth is - You are more than enough because he choose to bleed and die for you. He choose to take all that ridicule and shame for you, He choose even when you did not know to ask, He believes in you when you have no belief left in yourself. He knew that the gifts he placed in you were enough. And that my friends is the truth.
But I can only tell you what I know to be the truth as a result of my experience so far. My deepest hope, like Paul, is that you will come to know for yourself about this love that is so amazing it can free you from anything to embrace everything God has purposed for you.
Ephesians 3 vs. 19
“…..and [that you may come] to know [practically, through personal experience] the love of Christ which far surpasses [mere] knowledge [without experience], that you may be filled up [throughout your being] to all the fullness of God [so that you may have the richest experience of God’s presence in your lives, completely filled and flooded with God Himself].”
The gentle lover of our souls is calling you to experience absolute freedom.
Be blessed!
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