Chains

Chains come in all different shapes, sizes and strengths. Some chains are delicate, like a necklace, and some are gigantic and are used to hold a ship in place. Sometimes, it doesn’t take much force to break a chain link, and other times it may seem unbreakable by mere human effort.

When I was a teenager, our neighbor had a German Shepherd, Duchess, an outside dog, tethered very near where we parked our car. In the beginning, before the dog got acquainted with us, I was very glad the owner had a strong chain attached to her. After a while I began to feel sorry for her, because her life was limited to where she could walk while attached to her doghouse. I wonder if she knew there was more freedom available when released from her chain? Or had she gotten used to her life and did not realize she was restricted in her liberty?

I don’t often think of myself as being chained down. However, recently, I have come to realize that my own anxiety was holding me down.  I have a lot on my mind and have some life changes happening. These changes are good things, however, the uncertainty of how everything will work out has caused me some sleepless nights and anxiety filled days.

Recently, I was in the car, listening to the radio and I changed the station to a Christian music station. The words that were being sung as I tuned in were “my chains fell off, I’ve been set free”, part of Amazing Grace (my chains are gone), by Chris Tomlin. I almost started to cry at the goodness of God in that moment. It was exactly what I needed to hear. These words in Chris Tomlin’s Amazing Grace, spoke to me “My chains are gone, I’ve been set free, My God, my Savior has ransomed me. And like a flood His mercy reigns. Unending love. Amazing grace”.  Praise God for His mercy and amazing grace.

Some people, who do not want to believe in Jesus as their Savior, say it is because, they think by surrendering to Jesus they are giving up control and the Christian life is restrictive. In their opinion, Christianity has a lot of dos and don’ts. They may look at this new life as giving up on what is important to them or how they want to live. I think they are living like my neighbor’s dog, chained to something and can only go so far. Their world, like Duchess’, is limited to the length of their chain. When we live as the world does, running after all the sparkly things the world offers, we are chained to ourselves, our desires, stress, anxiety and in some cases fear. Living surrendered to Jesus, does not offer restriction, but freedom. My prayer is that people will realize I don’t live a restricted life, but I live freely.  I can live free from carrying burdens and anxieties. And, they can have the same freedom. Jesus said I have come so that you may have life. (John 10:10b)

When I heard the words in that song, I realized that I don’t have to carry the weight of chains like a badge of honor. I am not gaining anything by carrying around this burden except exhaustion. I thought about something I either heard or read somewhere, that one drop of blood has the power to break a chain. Of course, not just anyone’s blood, but the powerful blood of Jesus. He shed his blood so I could be free. He does not want us to be chained down by the burdens we unnecessarily carry.  In I Peter 5:6-7 Peter tells the persecuted church to “humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

As I was drying off one day, I accidentally broke the chain of a necklace I was wearing. It was delicate and did not take a great deal of pressure to break one of the links. The necklace chain easily broke, but the hardest chain to break is the invisible chain that I cling to by not surrendering to the freedom through Jesus. Some days, I may not even realize that I am attached to a link in a chain. Like the necklace being able to be repaired, this invisible chain seems to keep getting put back together, so I must have this bond broken repeatedly.

God desires to set us free so that we can live the way He intended when He created us. He wants us to live in freedom. I think about how Peter was imprisoned because of his witness for Christ. Herod thought he could please the Jews by arresting Peter and others. He had Peter thrown into prison and put him in chains. (Acts 12). God was not hindered by these human actions, and he is not hindered by our spiritual chains. He is more than able to set us free no matter the circumstance. When the chains fell off Peter had to be willing to walk out of the prison and leave his shackles behind. The question I ask myself is “why don’t I leave the bonds behind when I am set free? Why do I keep them as if I will need them again?”

There is a war going on in the heavens over humanity.  One side wants to take as many human souls as possible with him into hell for eternity. And if he can’t take us with him, then his main objective is to hold us back from the joy of the freedom offered by Christ’s sacrifice. The Sovereign, Almighty God, also wants to spend eternity with us. God offers the only way of redemption through His son, Jesus. He offers us true freedom, not the illusion of it. After we accept Christ as Savior, we participate in living freely by choosing to lay down our burdens and not solder the links of a chain together.

It only takes one link in a chain breaking to make the whole chain useless. What link in my chain can I submit to God and break so that everything else falls away and I am set free? Breaking the bonds that are holding me back may be scary. I may think the links are worthwhile and want to repair them, like my necklace. However, any link that needs to be broken to experience true joy and freedom is worth letting go of. The power to break my spiritual chains is in one drop of my Redeemer’s blood. I must be willing to accept that they are broken and walk away in the freedom that was purchased for me at Calvary.  Praise God that my chains are gone, I’ve been set free (Chris Tomlin).