I sat in a circle of friends today and we discussed the topic of freedom. It was incredible. Freedom is one of the most powerful longings of the human heart. That is why the topic is also scary. When we have no freedom it becomes difficult to talk about. Deep down we fear that we will never have it.

Who do you know that you feel lives free? 

I was at a breakfast with a friend and we were discussing this. The waitress came to the table and we posed the question to her. She gave a surprising answer. She said, “Maybe an indigenous group of people that don’t have modern civilization and simply live off of the land.” Her answer was profound. I was stunned when she said that. Why would a waitress have that answer off the top of her head? Does she know anyone that lives free? Does she think that freedom is possible in this modern world?

It’s hard to find freedom when we don’t know the reason for the bondage. 

Oftentimes, we don’t know the cause of our bondage, so we look for the wrong key to get freedom. It doesn’t matter how many times you put the key in the door lock, if it’s the wrong key it will not work.

Freedom does not happen after a problem goes away. 

Many people feel that their problem is the reason they are not living free. Instinct says, “I need to fix my problem, so I can be free.” That sounds logical. But it’s impossible to fix our problem until we find freedom. Normally, our problem is happening because we are living in an invisible prison. The problem is not why we got into the prison. The problem started because we were in the prison. 

Many people live in bondage because of what happened between them and people, but we fail to see it. 

For example, let’s say that a married man or woman is struggling with an addiction to pornography. It seems like pornography is the problem. But, what if I tell you a little more of the story. Let’s say their spouse was caught up in their career and stopped pursuing them. You might say, “Well, that’s no excuse.” It’s not about having an excuse, it’s about understanding what happens in our life so we can experience freedom. By the way, having a spouse that pursues you boldly is like water to our bodies. It is more than important, it is essential. 

Freedom is hard to find because fear and comfort are everywhere. 

We can live our entire life being distracted by fear and comfort. We can run from fear, and toward comfort with every moment of our existence. Culture will support you in living that life. Nobody is going to tell you, “Stop living in fear.” And at every corner someone is selling you a quick way to have more comfort. 

Freedom has a price that many are not willing to pay. 

Freedom requires something that nobody wants to do. We are willing to make many sacrifices for things that we want in life, but freedom asks us to pay a price that most are never willing to pay. What is the price? Surrender. I will not attempt to explain surrender in this post. But I will say this, surrender enables a person to step into the pathway of freedom, and freedom brings with it a reward that makes you forget the price you paid.