I read a quote this afternoon by Suze Orman, internationally acclaimed personal finance expert. She said, "Financial freedom is having your heart and mind free from the what-ifs of life." I thought it was a really cool quote. Everyone wants financial freedom, or should anyway. Financial freedom would solve a lot of people's problems, including my own. However, it won't solve all of them. Her quote got me thinking about the "what-ifs" of life that have to do with more than just finances. Things like, the death of a loved one, a sudden illness, a broken relationship, fear of the unknown, fear of death, loss of reputation, loss of a pet, natural disasters, etc. How awesome would it be to have our minds and our hearts free of those worries?! Well, there's good news...it's completely possible. Think about her quote and replace the word "financial" with the word "spiritual." It then reads like this, "Spiritual freedom is having your heart and mind free from the what-ifs of life."
The definition of the word freedom is: voluntary; without restraint; without cost; to set at liberty. Jesus came to give us total freedom. He paid the cost so that we wouldn't have to. Spiritual freedom is way more valuable to me than financial freedom. Don't get me wrong, financial freedom is a huge goal for me and always will be. But I could have all the money in the world and yet, if my spirit is broken and in bondage, where would that leave me? Money does not solve all your problems or make you happy permanently. You need something more.
Here are some scriptures regarding freedom:
"In my anguish I cried to the Lord, and he answered me by setting me free. The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? The Lord is with me; he is my helper. I will look in triumph on my enemies. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man." ~ Psalm 118:5-8
Every day we have to put our confidence in something or someone. When we get on a plane, we are putting our trust in the pilot and in turn, that pilot is putting his trust in the plane. We put our money in the bank and we trust the bank, or the investor, not to lose it. We get in a car or on a bus and we are trusting that the driver is going to get us to our destination safely. If we are willing to put our trust in people or automobiles, are we willing to trust God to guide us here on earth and to our eternal destination? Do you trust him more than any human being? It is futile (and in my opinion), crazy to trust anyone or anything more than God.
This is where the "what ifs" come in. "What if the plane crashes?...What if the bus crashes on the way to my kids' school?...What if a tornado hits my house?...What if I get cancer?...What if I get mugged on the bus?...What if my son/daughter is kidnapped?..." The list of worries in our brains goes on and on. If you are living in spiritual bondage and not in spiritual freedom then this list of worries can turn into expectations. Your fear and anxiety over these things can grip you so much that you almost expect them to happen because you've made them a reality in your mind. Do you know what I'm talking about? There are times when my mind has gotten the better of me to the point where I feel like what I'm fearing has already happened, even though it hasn't. Those are the "what ifs" that Jesus came to set us free from.
2 Corinthians 3:17 says, "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." Where the Spirit of the Lord is...where is the Spirit of the Lord? He's everywhere. And, If you have accepted Jesus Christ into your heart as your Lord and Savior, then the Spirit of the Lord is in you. You already have it, you're already free. The same power that raised Jesus from the dead lives in you! It's such a lie from the pit of hell when you hear people say that YOU have to do something to get into the presence of God, like light candles or burn incense, or chant specific things. If you have Jesus living in you, His presence is with you no matter where you are or what you're doing. You can call on him in the middle of Wal-Mart and he'll be right there with you. You can call on him in jail and he will be right there with you. You can call on him from a ship in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and he'll be right there with you. You don't have to be any specific place at any specific time for him to be with you. It's not where the candles are burning just right, where the prayers cloths are all laid out 'just so', or only where the elders are gathered, etc. Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. Period. And if you call on Him, he will answer you. He will set you free. What you have to do is let him.
Psalm 34:4 says, "I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears." Notice how this verse starts out with David seeking God. He wasn't seeking man. Isaiah 41:13 says, "For I am the Lord, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you."
Jesus promises to help us. When you release your worries and your "what ifs" to him, he will take them from you. The key is, once you give them to him, DON'T take them back! If you do, give them right back. If you have to do that fifty times a day, do it. If you are in the habit of worrying about "what ifs", then it will take some practice for you to trust God. (See my earlier blog post, Practice Makes Perfect.) You can be free from the "what ifs" of life. You can! In order to be free you must trust God. Put your hope entirely in him, no matter what your circumstances.
If some of your "what ifs" have actually come true in your life, it doesn't mean that Jesus doesn't love you or that he's punishing you. It also doesn't mean that you have to beat yourself up about it either. Romans 8:1 says, "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death." He has offered us freedom from sin, and power to do His will. We live in a world of sin and bad things happen. But, there is a God who promises to be with us no matter what we are going through. We don't have to fear the "what ifs" of life because we know that no matter what happens, we are not alone. God is there and he will always be there when we call on him. He will never leave you or forsake you. His plans for you are good and not evil. He is preparing a place in Heaven for you. Our home is with Him, our final destination. That is spiritual freedom.
