“It was for freedom that Christ set us free. Stand firm, therefore, in your freedom and don’t become enslaved again to a yoke of bondage.” Galatians 5:1
When I was 44 I started having back pain I couldn’t get rid of. I complained about it, prayed about it, and had others pray for it, yet it persisted. My wife told me to go to the chiropractor several times, so eventually I humbled myself and went.
The chiropractor made an adjustment to my back that I could never have performed myself. I literally heard something snap in my back and felt something move into place that had been out of alignment. I was thankful and ready to leave, but the doctor wasn’t done. He told me to stop carrying a wallet in my back pocket and gave me a list of exercises to start doing so my back would stay in place.
How intrusive! I just wanted to feel better; I wasn’t looking for a new lifestyle, so I ignored his instructions and went on with my life. The problem was that my back started hurting again in a few weeks, and I had to return. I didn’t want him to know I disobeyed his instructions, so I left my wallet in my coat pocket before going in to see him.
After the appointment, I realized I had a decision to make. I could either spend my life going back for adjustments or change my lifestyle. Today, I use a money clip and have a regimen of exercises I do every morning for my back. I haven’t needed an adjustment in years.
God loves us so much He sent Jesus to die on the cross to free us from our sins. Only Jesus can make the adjustment in our lives that aligns us in a right relationship with God, and if we fall back into sin, He is more than willing to forgive us and put us back into alignment. But God has something more for us. He wants us to learn how to live in alignment and not have to be constantly repenting. He wants us to stand firm in the freedom He has won for us and never live in bondage again.
The world is too proud to come to Jesus for an adjustment. The church is often too apathetic to make lifestyle changes that would allow us to walk every day in the freedom Christ died for. Let’s shake off unbelief and apathy; let’s purpose to get free, and then to live free, for God’s glory and our good.
One Thing 