Breaking Free!

Last week, Kim, Joanna, and I took our dog Sadie with us to one of our local parks that is filled with wooded trails to walk and run.  As Joanna and I were running with Sadie, I stopped to switch her leash to a different part of her collar. What I didn’t realize was that I hadn’t clipped her leash on completely. Thus, after going just a short distance Sadie broke free and took off into the woods (chasing deer and squirrels, I presume!). About twenty minutes later when we finally found her—or, she found us—she was totally exhausted, to the point that she could hardly walk! And, she seemed very, very glad to be back with us, if not a bit remorseful. Maybe breaking free wasn’t all she thought it was going to be.

Saide on her long leash on the trail

What Sadie didn’t (or doesn’t) understand is, the leash we put on her is actually for her good.  Because she is not able to set boundaries for herself, she needs us to do so for her. Without the leash, she could end up in the street and be hit by a car or get lost to the point that she wouldn’t be able to find her way home.  By not being totally free, Sadie is able to enjoy what we might call, “the good life”—food, water, a comfortable place to sleep, and lots and lots of attention! By breaking free, she was not only freeing herself to pursue what she thought she wanted to attain but breaking free from all the blessings that we as a family offer to her every day.  

Unfortunately, sometimes we treat God’s Word like Sadie treats her leash. We think that we are being restricted and kept from things that will make us happy. Sometimes we think we know better and thus we try to take hold of life on our own. We soon find out that life lived on our own is not what we thought it would be.  Like Sadie, we end up exhausted and remorseful.  And, we soon realize that by living according to God’s Word, we are kept in his place of blessing and that real freedom is found in living God’s way, not ours.

As the psalmist reflected on God’s Word he wrote words such as these:

“I will always obey your law, for ever and ever. I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts.”  (Psalm 119:45-46); “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” (Psalm 119:105); “How sweet are your words to my taste,  sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Psalm 119:103)

I don’t really want us to picture God’s Word as a leash around our necks. However, I do want us to understand the blessing his Word is to our lives. In reality, his Word is not meant to harm us or frustrate us or keep us from anything good but has been given to us to keep us in his place of blessing. Thus, rather than seeking to break free and run out into life on our own, let’s realize how good and gracious God has been to us by giving us his Word. Most of all, let’s live our lives according to his good, gracious, and perfect Word. 

Have a great day!

Pastor Tim Harris