Self-Denial 2023: Which Yoke?
'We are Abraham's descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, 'You will be made free'?' Jesus answered them, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.'
John 8:33-34 (NKJV)
As a young woman, I thought I was free. I believed I was a self-made success.
Secondarily, I was a mother and a doctor's wife. I lived in nice homes, moved in high circles, and owned some cool stuff. As time passed, I began to feel the weight of my golden chains. Nevertheless, I carried them proudly. I considered them proof of my power.
I didn't yet know… Jesus Christ is the only Proof that's true, and God is the only Power that lasts.
Not until painful events slowed me down… did I pause to consider my values. My gold was fake. It rusted and splintered. My declaration of independence as a liberated woman… crumbled. Like angry Saul, I was the ox kicking against the goad of God's authority.*
My self-constructed yoke wasn’t gentle, and my burden wasn’t light.
Truth began in a harsh self-assessment, but soon turned into a glorious Light: a Light that literally saved my life.
Nobel prize winner, Bob Dylan, was right when he wrote: 'You're gonna have to serve somebody. It may be the devil or it may be the Lord, but you're gonna have to serve somebody.' ** All people have yokes.
Joshua put it this way: 'Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the river, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord' (Joshua 24:15).
God puts it this way: 'I call Heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live; that you may love the Lord your God, that you may obey His Voice, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days' (Deuteronomy 30:19-20).
All of this world’s high achievers WILL learn…
Independence is just a fairytale. Self-fulfillment is a floating balloon, and self-confidence is its helium.
Although crowds may watch the balloon rising… as it starts to shrink, people look away. Few will see its inevitable burst. Only God guarantees a permanent rise.
Self-Denial 2020: Which Yoke? (Part 2)
NOTE: This is a 2022 update of a 2012 Carey Lewis Devotion. You may see notes to 'Actors, Models & Talent for Christ.' If you think you're not in show business, think again. Shakespeare said, 'All the world's a stage and all its men and women merely players. Mostly true. But you're not merely players. You are messengers and ambassadors for the King of kings.
* Acts 9:5: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=acts9:5&version=NKJV
** Lyrics to 'Gonna Serve Somebody' http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/bobdylan/gottaservesomebody.html