Do you believe freedom is possible?

If you asked me what sin I struggle with the most, I do not think pride would be at the top of the list. That is not to say I do not struggle with pride at all. A couple of years ago, I went through a period in my life where I believed, deep down, my sin was too big for God. I believed, whole-heartedly, I was trapped in the self-destructive life I had chosen. I believed I could not be free. I believed, even if God could, He would not want to free me. I was believing lies. Although it may not seem like it, this, my friends, is still pride.

I spent many months believing these lies even though I did not have any proof. Being that I am human, my heart is faulty. I can question where these lies came from- was it my perfectionistic tendencies, my people-pleasing nature, or failing to live up to expectation? Ultimately, it begins with our sinful nature leading to a faulty heart.

Whether it was one or a combination of those scenarios, the point was, I was squashing the Truth of the Gospel. I was ignoring the Truth that I am loved (John 3:16), I have been set free (Galatians 5:1) and I am forgiven (Ephesian 1:7). I was sinking deeper into a hole only God could get me out of. The deeper I was falling, the louder the lies were becoming. I was hearing, and believing:

You are not worth it.
You are not good enough.
You deserve to destroy yourself.
You will never be free.
You are not worthy of freedom.

Lies. We all hear lies. They are not uncommon. It is Satan’s trick to bring us down and draw us away from God and His Truth. Thankfully, with any lie, there is always the Truth. By God’s Grace, He brought some people into my life who persevered in speaking the Truth to me so that I believed I could be free. When I faced temptation or when I began to feel hopeless and lost, ‘Jesus is Bigger’ became the motto to remind me of the Truth. When I think my sin is too big for God to forgive and begin to shy away from approaching God, I pull out Psalm 103:12, ‘as far as the east is from the west, so far does He remove our transgressions from us.’ (ESV) The verse reminds me of how strong God’s forgiveness is.

Have you ever believed you could not be free? Have you ever believed your sin was too big for God? There is good news for you! The Bible is full of examples of Jesus being bigger than anything else. The greatest example is His resurrection. If Jesus can overcome death, I think He is bigger than any sin, problem, sickness, doubt and lie there is. Unfortunately, because we live in a sinful world, these will still be present until Jesus comes back again but He is still bigger!

Here are some of the ways I have chosen to believe the Truth:

• Surrounding myself with Christian community. I need the encouragement of fellow brothers and sisters. I attend a bible study once a week, and I also meet up with a couple of girls regularly to pray and have accountability.
• Praying each day to renounce the lies and believe the Truth. For the past 2 years or so, I have been praying a prayer at night for protection of my heart and mind. The Bible encourages us to take every thought captive. (2 Corinthians 10:5)
• Memorising Scripture. Having verses up around the home and workplace is great. For example, the mirror in my bathroom has ‘Truth = Freedom’ and ‘The Armour of God’. The mirror can be a place where lies begin to form so it is important to remind myself of the Truth. A couple of my favourite verses on freedom are Galatians 5:1 and Galatians 5:13.

Jesus is bigger and I am still human. I need to continue to work at fighting pride, renouncing lies, and reminding myself of the Truth. Jesus is bigger than my pride, Jesus is bigger than the lies, Jesus is bigger than my sin. Jesus is bigger!!