How easily we can fool ourselves into thinking we are free, while we live unaware of those invisible chains which still have a hold on us. We can be captured and captivated by the things of this world, enslaved by our own drives and desires, held captive by guilt, shame and pain. But we try to hide away from the anguish it brings.
Jesus offers us a remedy for a life of slavery to self and to sin, and hope for a need to be set free. His blood, His love, His goodness and grace all pave the way to an eternal destiny where freedom beckons with an invitation, whereby bending, bowing and brokenness are the means of entry.
Will we come? Will we heed the risen Saviour’s voice calling out across the sands of time? Will we seek to be loosed, like Lazarus, from physical and spiritual death?
Once a soul has been given to God, it will never be the same again. He will gradually, gently take and break, mould and make us anew, shaping us oh so tenderly into all we were always intended to be.
Being loosed
Lazarus became loosed from death
precursor to the cross to come
where death would lose
its final sting, and Christ
would rise soon from the tomb
A strange unravelling,unwinding of
bandaged limbs held fast in waxy cold
confines of morbidity, where life was lost
A warming, rushing pulse of life-breath
flooding through instead, as colour returns
and rigor mortis turns back to vigorous
And death’s steely-grip chains break at last
as our Saviour reveals The Way to be free
Now we have Hope and Life anew, as we
limp through our own resurrection days
blinking in unaccustomed Sun’s rays
We teeter on the edge, where death
lies as sinking abyss, yet across
its depths Christ’s firm footsteps tread
His arms spread wide to bring us Home
to eternal Life spent by his side
©joylenton2017
And once we have heeded the call to die to self so that we can rise to newness of life in Christ, we discover how, little by little, with Holy Spirit’s help, those things we were addicted to, or which held us fast, are slowly loosed.
An unravelling begins, as we become more alive on the inside, our hearts softened by God’s love, our souls more receptive and ready to be changed. Day by day, Christ’s resurrection glory and joy begin to overcome the darkness within. We are free… We can breathe… We can begin again…. Easter resurrection hope and joy is ours for eternity. Christ is risen indeed, hallelujah!!
Happy Easter, dear friend! May you rejoice in the glorious Hope we have in Christ. 🙂 ❤
Poetry Joy 
Joy, I am so blessed by your words today. They remind me of the little card someone gave me after my baptism- he’d carried it with him a few weeks to finally give it to me, a stranger in our 400+ people church, but a brother in Christ:
The way of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, which shines ever brighter until the full light of day.
Proverbs 4:18
The end of your poem is especially encouraging as are these words: “Day by day, Christ’s resurrection glory and joy begin to overcome the darkness within.” There’s so much teaching around that tells us we should be more free, we should be more secure in our identity in Christ, we need to undo curses from our ancestors, we need to work harder etc. What you share here is the Biblical and truth-filled freedom Christ talks of…a day-by-day light yoke, that leads us through deep waters, but tethered to our Truth Speaker inside who calms the waves we feel and let enter our thoughts, teaching us piece by piece how to surrender ourselves and embrace Him. This is a God-send today of all days for me. I will have to fill you in some time…but anyways- know God is using you powerfully to encourage and press His followers into Him alone.
Anna, I so appreciate you sharing how you’ve been reminded of a significant moment in your faith walk in reading this post. When we are brothers and sisters in Christ, we are far from strangers, even if we’ve never met before. It’s lovely to see how what unites us can help to overcome potential barriers we might otherwise raise when meeting new people! And it is a comforting thought to know that, despite outward appearances, we are all works in progress in our movement toward greater Christ-likeness. It’s rarely an overnight transformation, but more of a gradual growing in grace and godliness.
My heart says an echoing ‘Amen!’ to your insightful words about it here: “a day-by-day light yoke, that leads us through deep waters, but tethered to our Truth Speaker inside who calms the waves we feel and let enter our thoughts, teaching us piece by piece how to surrender ourselves and embrace Him.”
It’s lovely to see you here, my friend! Thank you for adding so beautifully to the conversation. Blessings, love and hugs to you! xox
Dear Joy,
I love these beautiful thoughts that speak of the unraveling that happens as Jesus sets us free! And yet this stanza spoke to me so softly today, as my body still deals with the “co-morbidity” that disease carries with it:
“A strange unravelling,unwinding of
bandaged limbs held fast in waxy cold
confines of morbidity, where life was lost
A warming, rushing pulse of life-breath
flooding through instead”
What a wonderful hope to know that there is no disease that can hold us forever, and no knot that can remain tangled for eternity–Jesus truly has won such a freedom for us! He brings life into our hearts, and we wait, with such a Blessed Hope, for the day that full release will be tasted with Him in Eternity! There can be no room for despair and despondency with such a Lord as we have. Thank you Sweet Friend for the encouragement that your words bring to me. It is truly a gift the way that God confirms His word to each of us, miles apart in locality, yet joined in thought with Him! Blessings, Love and Hugs to you! xoxo
Dear Bettie, oh how I smiled when reading this: “What a wonderful hope to know that there is no disease that can hold us forever, and no knot that can remain tangled for eternity–Jesus truly has won such a freedom for us!” You always manage to return a wonderful dose of encouragement to me with your comments. Would you believe I am feeling the co-morbidity more strongly this week after twisting my back awkwardly on Sunday?! So your words about the victory Jesus has already secured for us over sickness and disease are definitely music to my ears.
Yes, even now, while we wait for the fulfilment of release for our bodies, we can be stirred to worship and praise and filled with hope and joy, especially on those days when the load is lightened a little bit. I am grateful for the generous gift of a sweet soul sister receiving similar thoughts to me! It’s lovely to share heart words with you, my friend. Blessings, love and hugs to you! xoxo
Reblogged this on Pastor Michael Moore's Blog and commented:
Beautiful, Joy, beautiful…
Bless you, Michael, you do my soul good! May your readers find something to lift their spirits in these words. Thank you, generous friend! 🙂 ❤
Amen! Happy Easter!!
A belated Happy Easter to you, too, Tara! Christ is risen indeed, hallelujah!! xo ❤
What a beautiful offering, my friend. I love how your words reference the unraveling of the burial clothes. Such a profound image. His tender, nail-scared hands, making us new and whole again. I pray your Easter was blessed indeed!
Thank you, June, I’m so pleased this post resonated with you, my friend! Lazarus being raised from the dead shows us how Jesus Himself will soon become freed and how we, too, can learn to discard the grave-clothes that cling so tenaciously to us, and walk in newness of life with Christ. Yes, to think of our Lord’s scarred and marred body given sacrificially for us is profound and humbling beyond words. Easter blessings remain with us while our family are visiting the area this week. Though we are unable to house them here this time, we’re still able to enjoy seeing them now and then. I just love getting better acquainted with our little grandson! He might tire me considerably but it’s a happy weariness offset by the joy he brings! Such zest for life is well worth seeing and enlivens me inwardly too. I hope and pray you have had a Happy Easter, full of grace gifts and abundant blessings! xo ❤