Redemption & recovery

Sunday at West Ridge Community Church, I had the opportunity to speak a bit about freedom, addiction, hurt and joy with my pastor, Dave Mitchell.  Along with preparing to speak in public comes alot of time for reflection, prayer, preparation and anxiety for me.  It is a huge responsibilty to speak words in public.  To think that people are listening closely to what you are saying and to realize your words can positively or negatively have an impact on their views on addiction, sin, recovery and even Jesus.  So I always prepare with fasting...helps "sober" me up and gets me focused.  After speaking I always come out with a personal lesson learned and growth!!
Shawshank Redemption is a great movie!  I can remember watching it a few years ago and loving it.  But I didn't seem to remember much except  he was in prison but he was innocent and that he dragged himself through alot of really yucky stuff to escape and find his freedom.  Before Christmas when I was looking for presents for the boys I saw the movie on sale for $4.  I bought it for myself and bought Owen a $4 copy of "Blind Side"(that was a good movie, too).  So Saturday night, the eve of my speaking in front of people, some people I was with were talking about the movie Shawshank Redemption.  I believe Gandalf was the one who said that it was on tv and he had watched it.  I wasn't even a part of the conversation but later on my drive home I began thinking about the movie.  And it just clicked!  Andy (the main character) never accepted the fact that he was going to live all of his days in prison.  He never gave up hope!  He knew there was more to life than what was behind the bars.  He had seen and experienced good and I'm sure he questioned how he ended up there and why!Andy carefully thought about how to escape and he used a small tool over the coarse of years to dig his way to freedom.  I honestly didn't think about the analogy too much and really didn't really any details of the movie- it had been years.  Well, I used the analogy Sunday, about how he knew he should be free and he found a way with his tool to escape captivity into freedom.  I wasn't even positive I was gonna say it and I never really know what will come out of my mouth but it came out at the end. 
Yesterday, Monday I was at home alone and decided to watch the movie.  WOW wee....I could break that movie down into lots of symbolic representations.  Like the scene where Andy refers to music keeping him going while in the hole for a whole month.  He said music was in his heart and head....to bad it wasn't a Christian movie and He could have explained to his fellow prisoners about the hope that lies within.  He could have said He had Jesus to keep him company and keep him sane while spending a month alone in a tiny dark room in what looked like a completely hopeless situation.  And about how he had to crawl through 500 feet of other peoples "crap" to get to freedom!  I HATE the word "crap" , hate it but I felt it appropriate there- poop didn't seem to carry the same weight and I considered dung but thought people would relate more to the word "crap".  I won't even let my boys say it and to be honest I don't get why other people say it but whatever:-)   God didn't show up and break him out of prison.  Andy had to spend years and years of his life behind bars.  Maybe if Jesus had shown up in the flesh and released him from prison it may have been a Christian movie but that isn't what happened.  What happened(and I think it is based off of a true story) is he asked for help.  He asked for help in getting a tool he could use.  He used his mind, which God had given him and he went to work.  He did his part and God did His.  There was thunder which provided the noise needed to disguise the sound of him smashing the sewer pipe.  He gave him favor with the guards.  There were more examples and I could go on but it is just representative of what God is currently doing in my life.    He is doing His part!!  I have been digging and working and planning.  He is opening my eyes and at the same time opening my heart! He is in control of the weather and the wind.   He has me in a season of waiting and watching.  Preparing and sowing!  Loving and leading!  If you are reading this, please pray that I will be faithful, hopeful, and full of wisdom and joy!! My reason for all this was to show that we are FREE in Christ!  FREE from addiction, anger, unforgiveness, anxiety, SIN!  We are free by His blood.  We are called to live in that freedom. But the sad part is some of us don't know that and some don't know how to find that free dom.  I said Sunday  that it is work and I want to emphasize that.  Yes, I believe God can instantly take things from us, anger, compulsions, habits and character defects.  I believe that He chooses to do that for some while for others He gives us tools or maybe just a fellow inmate that can get us a tool.  I can't explain His ways...there are not mine.  But I know He is the absolute only hope for real freedom and that Jesus came to set the prisoners free!! And for that reason, I celebrate!!