First off, I'd like to pay my respects to Nelson Mandela. I don't fully know or understand the lengths to which he went to secure freedom for his people. But I do know that he was one man who radically changed the world for the better, fighting again and again for justice, truth and grace.
Now he is in a place where there is no imprisonment, pain or injustice. Where sickness cannot damage the body, and people no longer hurt one another. Where all who know the Way are welcomed in regardless of race, social standing or wealth.
Now he is truly free.
In a more symbolic way, each one of us is also on a long walk to freedom. Though we may not face the same obstacles as he faced, none of us is truly free. I do not mean to imply that the everyday trials of my privileged life are on a par with the struggles of Nelson Mandela. There is no comparison. But even so, I am not yet free.
I am not yet free from the habits of sin. From the temptations that cause me to do what I do not want to do. From the bad choices I make again and again, from the countless times I trip over my own pride or self-righteousness.
I am not yet free from the hurts of my past. From the significant and seemingly insignificant events that have clouded how I view the world. How I view myself.
I am not yet free from the guilt and shame that both these things inspire. I am not yet ready to fully accept the cleansing of grace. To step forward instead of looking back.
I am not yet free, but only not yet. One day, even if I have to wait til the ends of the earth, I will be free. And until that time, I am on a journey. A long, long walk, but a destination that I know I will reach in the end. And the progress is not a slow as one might think. Even in this life, I am breaking free. Slowly, by the grace of God, the chains are being loosened.
How thankful I am that I do not have to make this walk alone.
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