Six Keys to Freedom in 2010

December 31, 2009 / Discipleship / Freedom / God's Presence / God's Word / Identity / Meditation / Revelation / Transformation 5 COMMENTS

I’m interested in helping people experience Freedom in 2010. If you are interested in pursuing more of the Freedom provided for you in Christ, here are Six Keys.

1) Understand what Freedom is and isn’t.
We must not equate freedom with relief from pain. The Bible defines freedom in terms experiencing God’s presence and the revelation of truth (John 8:32; 2 Cor 3:17). When I define freedom in terms of God’s presence and voice, then these are the things I will pursue and my journey toward freedom will be Christ centered instead of me centered. When I instead define freedom in terms of solving my problems, then my focus will be on self and my problems will shape my pursuit and thereby the outcome of my pursuit. Freedom isn’t when I stop doing ______. Freedom is when I’m able to relate to God without hindrance as the person he created and redeemed me to be.

2) Invest in a process.
Freedom is part of your inheritance in Christ. It is part of the promised land God desires you to possess and inhabit. But that which is fully yours in Christ must be conquered, possessed, and inhabited bit by bit. Think discipleship. Think journey. If freedom was simply about the expulsion of demons then a process might be less necessary. But I need to be set free from more than just demons. You can’t cast out the flesh.

3) Get help.
At Gateway Church we have developed a powerful process to help you experience freedom. Visit us at http://freedom.gatewaypeople.com to learn more.

Foundations of Kingdom Living – These five classes are offered Monday nights and are designed to help shift your thinking in some key areas concerning God’s purposes, how people experience change (and how they don’t!), what God’s part is in the process, and what our part is.

Topical Classes – On Wednesday nights we offer a wide variety of classes on specific topics. These classes include about an hour of powerful teaching followed by an opportunity to respond and receive ministry from our Freedom Ministry Team. These classes take the big picture concepts learned on Monday night and apply them to specific areas related to your freedom.

Kairos- 4 times a year we offer an opportunity for you to receive extended ministry in a large group setting. On Thursday night, all day Friday, and wrapping up on Saturday morning you will experience extended times of worship, powerful teaching, and multiple opportunities to respond to God’s presence and voice. Kairos is a powerful experience that will change your life!

Freedom Ministry Modules- Throughout most of the year we have a variety of small gatherings which meet at our Ministry Center. Modules provide a safe environment for participants to respond to God’s presence and voice, activating what they have already experienced in our classes and at Kairos in application to a particular area of need or struggle. Modules exist for both men and women and range in topics including grief, addictions, sexuality, abortion recovery, anger, codependency, and more.

Personal Ministry – Though most people experience the freedom they need in the environments described above, some will benefit from a time of personal ministry as a continuation of their process.

4) Learn to meditate on scripture.
Information doesn’t produce transformation. Revelation does. When I meditate on scripture I am pursuing the kind of revelation that can transform me from the inside out. I believe there is a level of freedom that cannot be experienced any other way. No one can do this for me. For the truth within scripture to become the kind of revelation that produces faith and results in personal transformation, the spiritual practice of scriptural meditation is essential.

5) Learn and implement new relational skills.
All of us live within family systems and play a role in repeating relational cycles that may or may not be healthy. Personal transformation needs a context in which it can be lived out in practical ways. In addition to experiencing deliverance, and inner healing, you may also need to learn how to take out the trash, how to listen, how to prefer others, and how to establish healthy boundaries.

6) Give away what you’ve got.
The nature of grace is that it must be given away. Freely you’ve received. Freely give. The reality is that free people free people. Those who are being transformed can help others experience transformation. Moving into the next level of freedom personally often involves giving away what I’ve already received to someone else.

So, if you’re interested in pursuing freedom in 2010, then I encourage you to make each of these Six Keys a part of your journey.