Getting Free

It was a good day. The few times that I got outside to walk around it was sunny and 70 degrees. Much different than what we left in Atlanta. Most of the day we spent doing Sozos. I did three today. All three of them were with leadership in the ministries of the church. I am always amazed how the church wounds it’s leaders. I know that people try to have good hearts, but Jesus didn’t call us sheep for no reason. He told Peter to feed my sheep. You want to know a secret. Sheep bite, and their bite can be deadly if not healed and brought into the light. So today I found myself dealing with old wounds, especially from former preacher’s kids. Why is it that pastor’s kids get so wounded. It seems that so many churches demand so much of their pastors that often the pastors wind up selling their souls and their families out for “ministry” Is God pleased with this? I really doubt it. I am thankful that more and more pastors are finally realizing that they need to protect their families and keep them safe from the excess demands of the congregation.

I don’t know of a single pastors kid, or PK, that wanted to be a PK. Most of them grow up resenting it at some level. But the problem goes much deeper than just PKs. We weren’t paid by the church; yet we wound up hurting our kids at the expense of “ministry”. At the time we were sure we were following what we were supposed to be doing, but as I look back now, I let my desire to minister take a higher place that valuing the protection of my daughters. Over the years, Julia and I both asked forgiveness for some of the things we did as parents. We did the best we knew how, but it wasn’t necessarily right. As I sozo people, especially PKs, I tell them about myself as a dad, and some of the mistakes I made. I believe that I was a good dad, but no one is perfect, and I know that I did things to hurt my children. Not on purpose, but hurtful just the same. So then I deal with whatever wounds and lied that were planted when they were children. This is one of the ways that we begin to get free. We have to realize that Father God doesn’t make mistakes. He doesn’t do things to hurt us, and we can’t blame Him for things that our dad’s did. We have to renounce the lies that we believed about Him and seek the truth from Him. When He shows us truth, we have to embrace it and then look at Him through “new lenses”. Only by doing this can we get free. Of course this is only a part of what we do in a sozo, but it is a big part.

Today I saw three people walking in much greater freedom after we finished than when we started. The feeling that you get from seeing people walk in freedom because you were used to connect them to the Godhead is unbelievably addictive. I can’t wait until tomorrow. I get to sozo three more people. Of course, everyone doesn’t get totally free in a sozo. I wish that they did. Sometimes they aren’t ready to do what is necessary. Forgiveness is such a big part in walking in freedom, yet so many people are willing or ready to release forgiveness. But today was a good day. Each of the three people that I sozoed was ready to change, and they all left walking in much greater freedom. That’s when you walk out on cloud nine just praising God and rejoicing in the setting free of some more captives.

So today, we set captives free and released prisoners from their chains. I love it. I am jus always amazed that such a big God loves me so much that He would use me and let me help Him set His people free. It’s great to be a son of the King and have Him trust me in working in the Kingdom. Tomorrow is going to be fun. We not only get to sozo three times, but then we lead a meeting to encourage others to be set free.