Broken Chains

"And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man…who had demons…nor did he live in a house but in the tombs…For it had often seized him, and was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles…and driven by the demons into the wilderness.” Luke 8:27-29

I don’t have to think hard at all this morning to remember a time in my life when I was bound with chains and shackles. It was a time when I alienated myself by secretly spending money that we didn’t have. It was a lonely and self-imposed wilderness where I ended up full of shame, guilt and anxiety. I can really relate to Heather Dixon, author of Determined. She writes, ‘Chains are not always made of iron. They can be unseen, binding us emotionally and mentally…Anxiety can be the thing that keeps you up all night, the thing that keeps you down in the morning, and the thing that keeps you from chasing your dreams. Regardless of how it manifests, anxiety keeps you in chains by keeping you from abundant living.’ P, 90.

Jesus came to set us free from everything both on earth and in heaven. Jesus was bound…hung…and died on the cross but God resurrected Him from the dark tomb and Christ broke forth in freedom. This is the example that we are called to do when we feel entombed in our own circumstances. We are to be determined followers to allow Jesus to ‘call out our demons’ and cleanse our hearts. When Jesus tells us that we can be liberated from our situations, we must take Him at His word and lay down our burdens. We will be people recognized by what our Savior has brought us through, and how we have more abundant living as Jesus intended us to have. ‘Luke 8:29 tells us that the demon drove the man into ‘solitary places…Where the enemy takes us to break us, Jesus takes us to heal us…There is no darkness He can’t free us from, no hold He can’t shatter.’ Determined, p. 91.

And once we are free, we are to take it to the streets and testify to the great things God has done. Our testimonies will echo Psalm 107:2-3. ‘Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story—those he redeemed from the hand of the foe, those he gathered from the lands, from east and west, from north and south.’