How do you define Freedom?
I had a dear friend share a Tik Tok with me and these verses have continued to pop back up in my head again and again in the past few days. Recently, I have had conversations about freedom and how do I or anyone else define freedom? Do we run to freedom or do we run away from existence constantly seeking freedom only to never find it? These verses reminded me of where I find my freedom. The freedom of not having to look back, of being defined by all that has passed but knowing that I am defined by what God has called me to become. Constantly moving forward knowing and trusting in what God has planned for me. The emptiness, the lack of freedom becomes filled. Letting go of what is behind me releases me from any constriction I may feel, or any limits I may have in becoming what God has planned for me. “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:12-14, NIV).
Put God first
I am blessed to have two jobs that I love and that give me the opportunity to engage with a large group of people. This week, I had some unexpected encounters from both my civilian job and my military job. Both encounters were not about my jobs or my work, but about my blog. I am always moved when I run in to people that share they read my blog or share it with their families. I am especially encouraged when the feedback comes from people of all ages and backgrounds. I had an earlier encounter with my civilian job and then, at the end of the week, I had a couple of encounters in my military job. I had two women come up to me encouraged that I am so open about my faith, even in such a senior position in the military. By seeing me open in my faith, they are encouraged to be open about their faith. How amazing is our God that my writing would encourage others to be bold in their faith. As Paul stated, when we put God first and listen to our calling, when we are bold in our faith, we exalt Him in all we do. “I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or death” (Philippians 1:20, NIV).