Free At Last by Martin Wiles

I hated the way it tasted and more so the way I felt the following morning, but it helped me fit in and made me temporarily forget my teenage struggles.

They say preacher’s kids get in trouble by hanging around with the deacon’s kids, and in my case it was true. My best buddy was a deacon’s son, and he introduced me to alcohol. Drinking became more than just a weekend endeavor with my peers. I wanted to be “badder” so I drank almost daily. And since current rules and regulations weren’t in effect, it was easy to get. 

I stayed in my prison until I was a young adult when God convinced me I didn’t need it and it didn’t fit who I was in Christ. So I put it away and never touched it again. 

Peter’s prison wasn’t alcohol but was taxing just the same-and perhaps life threatening. Only God could deliver him. Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists (Acts 12:7).

Literal prisons are repulsive, but there are other prisons that are just as filthy and dangerous. Addictive substances, obsessive thoughts, abusive relationships, uncontrollable spending, rejection, pornography and immoral lifestyles are all prisons of the mind and soul only God can deliver us from. One touch from an angel freed Peter. Some prisons take longer to escape and require hard work, but the starting point is the same-God’s touch and our willingness to change the circumstances confining us.

What mindsets, relationships or actions are imprisoning you? Let God free you from what only he can.

Prayer: Magnificent God who controls our thoughts and actions, we trust You to make us free at last.