If I took a virtual poll right now, how many of you would choose freedom over being locked up in prison? Let me be the first to raise my hand! I think that majority of us would choose to be free right? You are probably thinking “Tara, who wouldn’t?” This seems like it would be an easy decision. Those who are behind those prison walls would probably give anything to be on the other side. A couple of weeks ago I had a vision and it left me a little puzzled for a moment. I was shown a prison cell. There was a woman sitting on a bench with ankle cuffs and handcuffs. The officer opened the door of the cell. He came in and removed the ankle cuffs and then the handcuffs. He walked out leaving the door to the cell wide open. She stayed right there and didn’t get up once she was set free. I couldn’t quite understand why someone would be sitting in prison and they are already free. There are so many of us who are in this same position of the lady from my vision.

God has set us free from bondage of addictions, relationships, hindering mindsets, abuse, etc. Yet some of us are like the woman sitting behind the cell free and don’t even know freedom has already been granted. We are holding ourselves in bondage of things that God has already released from our lives. In some cases, many have asked to be free. Many nights of crying ourselves to sleep because all we can think about is what lies beyond this place of confinement. Some are all cried out and living silently in pain. Hearts are aching to experience happiness beyond the bondage. Now that we have been given the liberty to get up and walk out, we are stuck sitting on the bench. Fear has come, and we don’t think there’s going to be a better life outside these walls. There is so much beyond the bondage, but you must first receive the freedom. If all you can visualize is doom and defeat, you will never be free. You must see life beyond bondage.

Maybe some of us found the courage to walk out. We took the steps and realized that there is a new-found freedom. Now we are out of prison, but we think that life outside of what we are used to is so hard. We are used to being bound emotionally, physically and psychologically that we struggle accepting the newness. This is a trick of the enemy to get you stuck in prison, so you don’t walk into the greatness that your lies ahead of you. You start to think that it was better being in prison then being free. You forget the bad things about prison that caused you to cry out for something better and thinking there must be more to life than this.  My heart aches for us that are deceived to believe prison is so much better than being liberated. It may be new and may even hurt sometimes when we are separating from relationships. It is only temporary. It will get better and you will be able to thank God for the freedom. Your mindset must be renewed with this new freedom or you will still be stuck in the prison of your mind. Listen do not sell yourself short. You are worth more than what you are accepting.

 
Then some has walk right back into the doors of the prison cell and close the door ourselves. Yes, we think that prison cell is our home and that’s the place that brings us peace because it turned into our normal. You start investing more into this place of bondage hoping to yield happiness. You are practically decorating the cell, so you can tell yourself it’s not that bad. Underneath all of that, remember it is still prison. It doesn’t matter how pretty you make it seem in your mind. There isn’t beauty in bondage. I know it seems hard for any of you to think that any of these images can be you. I was once that woman on the bench inside the prison. I was so used to the heartache, pain, and even numbness that came along with it. I struggled with moving past that to walk into a place where I could truly live. Oh, I thought, that I was living because of what I labeled as good moments. I had no clue that I was slowly dying, and life was being sucked from me. Think about prison. When a person goes in, their life stops at that moment until they are released. You aren’t truly living in bondage. There is so much life, joy, peace, happiness, prosperity, and healing beyond bondage.

I ask you to please search where you are currently. Are you sitting in prison after God has released you? Are you out of prison, but now you are aching to be back in the walls of confinement? Have you returned to prison and locked yourself back inside to what God has released from you? Are out of prison and enjoying your freedom, walking in your purpose, and truly enjoying the life God has for you?