They have been saved. The news of German surrender was announced the night before and the Jews rest together waiting for official word because the man who rescued them is now a fugitive. A Russian officer approaches the gates and utters the words "You have been liberated by the Soviet army!"
Just like that; they were free. No more being hunted and slaughtered. Over 6 million of their people had already experienced this, more than we can imagine lost everything, and in a moment they are free.
I cannot imagine the day after the war. The fear, the skepticism, the mourning. Most Jews had nowhere to go; just because they were legally free does not mean that certain people did not still see them as vermin. Still today there is racism against them. They had no belongings and for most of them even their dignity was stripped from them. But... they were free, pardoned, the war was over. They had the choice to move and begin their lives over in this new world, or to remain as they were lost and hopeless - unwilling to carry on knowing they were marked and would not be welcomed by many.
As I watched the ending of one of my favorite films (Schindler's List) I could not help to relate that scene to the freedom we have in Christ. He died on the cross for us - he won the battle for our souls. However, it is up to us to live in that freedom or to deny it and continue to live like slaves. To disregard his victory and continue to live by those who scorn us because of the marks we still carry.
The fact is that Jesus shared in our humanity so that He could "free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death" (Hebrews 2:14) We see in Romans 6:23 that "...The wages of sin is death,
but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." What fools we would be to not claim the freedom handed to us.
Yes, we WILL face persecution "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds
of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly
glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the
prophets who were before you" (Matthew 5:11-12). The Jewish race was not welcomed back with open arms, but they kept going despite what they faced. They fought for their families, and their race. We endeavor for the sake of the Gospel so that all may hear of and understand who Jesus is! It is our commission, and the most worthy cause.
[Galatians 5:13 also warns us against misusing our freedom "For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty
as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another."]
So, knowing the freedom we have in Christ (and how to use it), what do we do? We live in it. Ignore those who try to claim you are still a slave. You may still bear the "marks of a slave" as the Jews bore their numbers or scars, but know that you have been liberated. There will be people who mock you, spit at you, and throw your past in your face, but no one can rescind your freedom. You stand redeemed in the eyes of the Lord, the one who holds the power of life and death. No matter what persecution you may face never stop proclaiming the Good News - for it is the key to life.
~Amanda Rose
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Fear Fear
"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself" ~ F. D. Roosevelt
These now infamous words were uttered during Roosevelt's inaugural speech. He was taking leadership during one of the worst economic crisis' during the history of the USA, and his tactic was to sway the people away from panic with these words. After this speech, and implementing several creative ways to move the economy upwards, there was significant improvement.
The fact is that we all have our fears. Fear of the darkness, heights, and spiders are a few of the most common ones.
Sometimes when it comes to our fears we don't actually understand what we're afraid of. You're not afraid of the darkness - you are afraid of what may be lurking within. You are not afraid of heights - you are afraid of falling. You are not afraid... well you may actually be afraid of spiders, they are pretty creepy. But you get my point - mislabeling fears can be dangerous. If we don't take the time to understand the depth of what causes our chests to tighten up, hearts to race, and feet to cease movement, how will we keep going? Fearing fear is such a brilliant concept because of this. Fear is defined as "An unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat." We know what fear is. We have all experienced it at one point or another to some degree. We all know that being stagnant is never helpful, being complacent gets you nowhere (seriously...), and you should know that you are worth more than settling for anything less than the best! Remember that your doubts will kill more dreams that your failures ever will. So, to be afraid of that emotion, that ceasing of movement, is helpful rather than hurtful.
However, the reality is that it's not always easy to keep fear at bay - to subdue that feeling and keep walking. But simply stated: the "bad fear" will do nothing but hold you back.
Example: Here's an honesty moment for you; I am mildly mortified of blogging. I do this to get myself out of my comfort zone. My fear: no one will be interested in or encouraged by what I have to say. Or I compare myself to people I know who are incredible at blogging (like Bobby, Jacob, and Jeffrey). Does this fear help me? No. It holds me back from becoming a better writer, and the author I hope to become one day. What should I do? Fear fear, and don't allow myself to be held back. If I never try I will never succeed. Whatever your fears are know that if you never try to overcome them you will never succeed.
My encouragement today to you is simply to learn how to fear fear. Whether you want to call fear complacency, settling, or stagnancy... fear fear, sway the panic, and keep moving forward.
~Amanda Rose
These now infamous words were uttered during Roosevelt's inaugural speech. He was taking leadership during one of the worst economic crisis' during the history of the USA, and his tactic was to sway the people away from panic with these words. After this speech, and implementing several creative ways to move the economy upwards, there was significant improvement.
The fact is that we all have our fears. Fear of the darkness, heights, and spiders are a few of the most common ones.
Sometimes when it comes to our fears we don't actually understand what we're afraid of. You're not afraid of the darkness - you are afraid of what may be lurking within. You are not afraid of heights - you are afraid of falling. You are not afraid... well you may actually be afraid of spiders, they are pretty creepy. But you get my point - mislabeling fears can be dangerous. If we don't take the time to understand the depth of what causes our chests to tighten up, hearts to race, and feet to cease movement, how will we keep going? Fearing fear is such a brilliant concept because of this. Fear is defined as "An unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat." We know what fear is. We have all experienced it at one point or another to some degree. We all know that being stagnant is never helpful, being complacent gets you nowhere (seriously...), and you should know that you are worth more than settling for anything less than the best! Remember that your doubts will kill more dreams that your failures ever will. So, to be afraid of that emotion, that ceasing of movement, is helpful rather than hurtful.
However, the reality is that it's not always easy to keep fear at bay - to subdue that feeling and keep walking. But simply stated: the "bad fear" will do nothing but hold you back.
Example: Here's an honesty moment for you; I am mildly mortified of blogging. I do this to get myself out of my comfort zone. My fear: no one will be interested in or encouraged by what I have to say. Or I compare myself to people I know who are incredible at blogging (like Bobby, Jacob, and Jeffrey). Does this fear help me? No. It holds me back from becoming a better writer, and the author I hope to become one day. What should I do? Fear fear, and don't allow myself to be held back. If I never try I will never succeed. Whatever your fears are know that if you never try to overcome them you will never succeed.
My encouragement today to you is simply to learn how to fear fear. Whether you want to call fear complacency, settling, or stagnancy... fear fear, sway the panic, and keep moving forward.
~Amanda Rose
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