Unshackled Echo ~ April 14, 2018 ~ Drop The Mask

Today's Unshackled Echo was previously published on

February 27, 2015.

Sometimes it feels like there are no such things as second chances, that God may forgive but the rest of the world never forgives or forgets. We may feel like we have a scarlet letter that others may not be able to see, but can somehow sense. It flashes: beware, don't trust, worthless, loser, screw up, or whatever (just insert your own feeling of inadequacy and failure here) to those we encounter, and they respond accordingly. Conventional wisdom is that this phenomena is a result of poor self-image and low self-esteem that we project to the world. The answer, according to said CW is to project self-confidence, to focus on your strengths, put your best foot forward, to act like the you that you want others to see, etc.

So come on, let's all grab our masks, use our positive thinking about who we are and what we can be to cover up the blemishes of our failures and fears like we're putting on makeup so the world can't see what really look like underneath the face we show. But maybe there's a better solution. I think there is.  We can be washed clean of the past. I can stand clean before the Lord, and not one blemish does He see. If I believe that God doesn't see any blemishes, then why should I be afraid of what the world sees?

Well, duh, Dalyn. Because it's the people of the world who do the hiring, dating, marrying, etc., the accepting or rejecting that is necessary for me to live in this world and get what I need and want. Oh the Great Lie that so easily distracts us from trusting God like a toddler trusts Daddy into a People Pleasing Beast, seeking the approval and acceptance of others by projecting an image of ourselves that not even we believe ourselves, even after staring in the mirror and repeating the lie for 30 minutes to begin our day.

No matter how many times we post on social media that we may have done whatever but we're really something besides that, we may look like blank but underneath we're a better blank, they may think this meanness or horror but I don't care what they think because I know better about myself, and so on and so forth; no matter how we spin and twist the past for our resume; no matter what illusions we attempt to present for our first impressions, trying to control people's response, reactions and or acceptance of us is not the answer. Manipulating and controlling self-image doesn't make us feel better about ourselves for long, and when the towers we build on this shifting sand begin to fail, we end up hurting worse and worse before each rebuild. Some of us give up and don't even try to rebuild anymore, or reach the place where we simply can't.

And that's a good place to start a new building on a solid foundation. Giving up the fight of trying to look good, of trying to fix our sell our broken flesh. Clean before the Lord. I'm not a repaired creation, I am a new creation. Why so downcast oh my soul? Put your confidence and trust in the God who loves, accepts and died for you. God shall supply my needs. Don't look to man who is fickle and fails, but put your hope in the God of love and deliverance. Let God part the sea, break down the walls, slay the giant keeping you from reaching what you need, and let Him do it without wearing makeup, so the world will know it wasn't you that accomplished this but Him. And what He has done for you, and for me, He wants to do for them as well.

We don't need religious or spiritual plastic surgery, especially not from the shaky hands of our own self-improvement. Our value doesn't come from who we are, or even who we can be. Our true value, worth, and esteem is found in who He is and His great love for us. That image doesn't crumble when the makeup gets smudged or wiped away, it doesn't crumble apart in the light, and it isn't shaken. Find yourself by losing yourself to Him and in Him, and then you can have a you that is truly lovable, even by you, and a life worth living, job or no job, relationship or no relationship, (fill in the blank) or no (fill in the blank).

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Unshackled Life Ministries is grateful for every person that reads the daily Unshackled Moments, the weekly Unshackled Echo and or listens to the Audio Messages. I want to thank those who have clicked "like" on something that blessed or ministered to them on social media, commented on the blog or replied to an email subscription. It is encouraging to know that God is using this ministry to help and bless others. Please remember that if God used something from this ministry to help, encourage or bless you, it could also bless someone else. Would you help get the devotions and sermons to more people by sharing this? Hitting the share button or forwarding this to a friend will help us reach more people with the good news of freedom and the encouragement to live an Unshackled Life. Thank you and God bless.

Unshackled Moments ~ April 13, 2018 ~ Free To Choose

We like to talk about the free gift of grace, grace that saves, grace that sets us free from bondage, grace that makes us able to love God and love others as we should and obey Daddy. And that grace is indeed free in the sense that Jesus did all that is required and there is nothing we can add to it or take away from His finished work. But I have to laugh a little when I see people trying to follow some Christ-inspired spirituality/philosophy without following Jesus Himself.

It's just not possible, because Jesus is not a spiritual teacher or even a prophet. Either He is exactly who and what He claimed to be or He was a liar or a madman. Jesus doesn't require us to be moral or to do our best. He demands everything, all of us. And sometimes that is hard for us to accept. We decide to surrender our will and lives to God's care, but does it really mean giving up the right to have rights, to control our own lives, to have our way? Yes, yes it does. And for those of us with addiction issues this is especially difficult. Selfishness and self-centeredness is the root of our problems. That same root has no desire to deny itself, take up the death of our will and lay all our life on the altar of sacrifice.

We like to think  that freedom means getting to do what we want, to have our will rule our lives. But that is not freedom. In that sense, none of us are free. We all serve something, either by choice or by force. We are born slaves to sin, and while  we might resist, sooner or later we all obey that master's demands. The freedom we have in Christ is the freedom to choose for once who we will serve. But the good news is that when we choose Christ, we are not made merely servants. We become brothers and sisters of the Lord, co-heirs with Him, the adopted children of Daddy, sealed by His Spirit, with all the rights and privileges that go with that. We may still be called to serve, and we have to submit our will to His, but what He wants for us is better than anything we could come up with on our own, His will and way lead to more satisfaction and contentment than we can have outside His will, even if we manage to get all we think we want. We may have to give up our life, but we gain a life worth living in exchange. Let us remember this truth when anything else calls to us with the idea that there could be anything better and more fulfilling than following Jesus.

This site is free. If this blessed, helped and or informed you, the best thing you can do is pass it on via the social buttons below. And please subscribe or follow Unshackled Life Ministries on Facebook.

Unshackled Life Ministries is grateful for every person that reads the daily Unshackled Moments, the weekly Unshackled Echo and or listens to the Audio Messages. I want to thank those who have clicked "like" on something that blessed or ministered to them on social media, commented on the blog or replied to an email subscription. It is encouraging to know that God is using this ministry to help and bless others. Please remember that if God used something from this ministry to help, encourage or bless you, it could also bless someone else. Would you help get the devotions and sermons to more people by sharing this? Hitting the share button or forwarding this to a friend will help us reach more people with the good news of freedom and the encouragement to live an Unshackled Life. Thank you and God bless.

Unshackled Moments ~ April 12, 2018 ~ Mercy

Driving down the road today in a borrowed truck I noticed the vehicle behind me happened to be a police officer. He stayed behind  me for about a mile and two red lights. The first thing I felt was relief that I had been using cruise control and knew I wasn't speeding. Then I thought about how good it was not to have to worry about such things anymore. There was a time when the mere presence of an officer near me would cause fear because more times than not I had something  with me I shouldn't have legally and or was under the influence. One of the many blessings of recovery is no longer having to be afraid of the consequences of being pulled over.

When we reached the third red light, he moved over into the turning lane and pulled up beside me. After a minute I glanced that direction, trying to gauge by the traffic on that side if the light was about to change. The officer signaled for me to roll down my window. I turned the radio down and hit the button to lower the window. When I did, he said, your right brake light is out. I thanked him, raised the window as the light turned green and began to drive and turn the radio back up.

I felt grateful for the mercy and kindness shown to me. But then it occurred to me that  I had felt I had no need to worry because I was legal, I was doing right. But I  was wrong. No, I had no need to fear any serious consequences, but the officer would have been well within his rights to pull me over and write me a ticket, which I seriously can't afford right now. My brake light isn't even anything easily checked by myself. I had to find something to wedge against the brake to double check what the officer told me when I reached my destination.

And this incident is like what can happen in our spiritual lives. It's great to reach a place where we no longer need fear condemnation and judgment and where we know we are not walking the wrong way on the wrong road. But knowing we are OK in the major things does not mean we are OK in everything. Sometimes we may be off in ways that are near impossible to see in and for ourselves. But we don't need to fear God about these. The Spirit is not a bully cop waiting for us to mess up so that he can write us a ticket or use the misdemeanor as an excuse to harass us and try to come up with a more serious charge.  He longs to protect and serve, and His warnings, which He will graciously give us, are for the safety of us and others.

Today, let us not be afraid to look in the direction of the Spirit. Let us be quick to open up communication with Him and heed His warnings, so that our peace will remain, our joy will be full and our lives will be even more worth living.

This site is free. If this blessed, helped and or informed you, the best thing you can do is pass it on via the social buttons below. And please subscribe or follow Unshackled Life Ministries on Facebook.

Unshackled Life Ministries is grateful for every person that reads the daily Unshackled Moments, the weekly Unshackled Echo and or listens to the Audio Messages. I want to thank those who have clicked "like" on something that blessed or ministered to them on social media, commented on the blog or replied to an email subscription. It is encouraging to know that God is using this ministry to help and bless others. Please remember that if God used something from this ministry to help, encourage or bless you, it could also bless someone else. Would you help get the devotions and sermons to more people by sharing this? Hitting the share button or forwarding this to a friend will help us reach more people with the good news of freedom and the encouragement to live an Unshackled Life. Thank you and God bless.

Unshackled Moments ~ April 11, 2018 ~ Facing Injustice

Whether it comes from turning on the news or scrolling through social media and seeing the horrors happening in the world, finding health failing or receiving a frightening diagnosis, losing a job when your performance was good, being taken advantage of or someone lying about you, or being judged by past mistakes instead of present success, or something else, injustice is all around us. Life isn't fair, and it often just isn't right.This truth can often lead to heartache and fear and make it difficult to trust Daddy. It can make us cry out like the Psalmist, how long Oh Lord will you let them prevail against me, let them mock me and slander me, let the evil prosper and the righteous despair? How do we handle injustice?

One thing I know is that I have done some evil things in my life. I have harmed others and brought destruction into the lives of friends and foes and strangers alike. I have done grievous wrongs for which I will never face judgment or the King's justice for because Jesus took my place of punishment and bore the condemnation of my sin. When we realize the great grace by which we have been spared what we deserve it settles the question of whether or not God cares about the injustice in our life. But that doesn't always take away the pain, the fear or the urge to rise up and defend or retaliate. There are ways that we can handle injustice in a Godly manner though, and Jesus, who experienced injustice in a way that we never will, gave us the model as He went through the last days of His life under the weight or horrible unfairness and attack.

The first way to handle injustice, from the example of Jesus, is to let others speak in your defense. Don't try to defend yourself. It usually just makes things worse. When being questioned by law enforcement people are encouraged to get a lawyer, especially when innocent, because  fear, anger and emotion can cause those trying to explain and defend themselves to look even more guilty and  things can be twisted. Emotion and righteous anger can cause us to lash out in retaliation, making us fall into evil ourselves and only exasperate and escalate the problem. What started as a small thing no one believed in the first place can quickly become a destructive feud damaging many. Jesus didn't defend Himself. When questioned Jesus said I have done what I have done openly, if you want to know what I said and what I did and who follows me, ask them. And what if others don't rise to your defense?

How I love you, Lord! You are my defender. The Lord is my protector; he is my strong fortress. My God is my protection, and with him I am safe. He protects me like a shield; he defends me and keeps me safe. I call to the Lord, and he saves me from my enemies. Praise the Lord! The danger of death was all around me; the waves of destruction rolled over me. The danger of death was around me, and the grave set its trap for me. In my trouble I called to the Lord; I called to my God for help. In his temple he heard my voice; he listened to my cry for help.

- Psalm 18:1-6

Yes, Jesus seemed undefended as He faced the slander and false testimony, but in the end He was given victory over their lies and over all the tried to do to Him, even death. And while we don't resist evil with evil, and we don't have to retaliate, we can and should set boundaries. We should let the Spirit guide us about how much injustice we accept and when we say this is not acceptable. But even when the line is reached, we don't  have to retaliate. When Jesus is physically struck during questioning, He doesn't do what we might expect from His teaching. He doesn't turn His head and offer the other cheek. But He also doesn't use His power to retaliate. The man who hit Him doesn't drop dead for daring to strike God. Jesus says if I spoke wrong, tell me my wrong, but  if I didn't, then why do you hit Me? There may be times when we have to say enough. If this continues I can't work here anymore. I can't participate in this any longer, or talk about this any more. I can't remain in this situation, so I need to step back from this relationship as long as this is continuing. It's not responding in anger or in kind, but it is setting boundaries about what we will participate in.

Often the best response is no response. Silent endurance under control of the Spirit. We don't have to answer every text, respond to every voice mail, blaze back on social media, argue back against every rant or accusation. Let others rant and rail and look the fool. give them their say and let it sit. It may be that they come to their senses later and realize they were wrong, and when you have remained under the control of the Spirit, your lack of response may be what displays grace and love that draws them to Daddy. It may be that our refusal to engage allows the Spirit to take us where we need to go so that God's purpose may ultimately be fulfilled. When Pilate asked about the charges against Jesus, the Pharisees answered and Jesus silently endured. Pilate found no fault in Him, and although He still went through the ringer of the cross, He was victorious and vindicated in the end, and God's purpose was fulfilled. Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself (Proverbs 26:4).

Understand the source of the issue. Get to the bottom of what is going on. When Pilate asked Jesus if He was the king of the Jews, Jesus asked if He wanted to know for himself or was he just repeating what he heard. Do you really think I am not doing my job or are you listening to what someone else is saying? Do you really think this is true about me or are you trusting a questionable source?

Focus on the eternal not on the moment. Jesus said my kingdom is not of this world or my followers would rise up. Remember that what is happening now is not forever. Injustice today does  not mean injustice for always. Does what is going on now effect me on an eternal scale or does it fall under what will all be made right in the end? I'm not going to fight over this. What is happening now is not what matters. What matters is my relationship with Daddy and what will happen in the eternal realm.

Finally, remember your true identity. Our identity is not defined by what others say or  think about you or how people perceive or treat you. It is based on who you are in Jesus and who Daddy says you are. Your boss or someone mistreats you and acts like you are worthless. It doesn't have to be defended because it doesn't change who  you really are. Someone's lies about you don't change your value or define you. You are a child of God, so valued that Jesus died for you and the Spirit sealed you to God. Nothing anyone does or says, not even you, can separate you from Daddy's love, so  there is no reason to fear the injustice you are facing.

Today, when we face injustice let us not be afraid. Let us not respond in kind. But let us submit to the will and control of the Spirit and let God be our refuge and our strength. When we do this, we don't have to worry about being taken back into bondage and slipping back into our old, natural ways, only escalating the problem and increasing the damage. Instead we can be brought closer to Daddy, and His power, glory, and way of life can shine brightly.

This site is free. If this blessed, helped and or informed you, the best thing you can do is pass it on via the social buttons below. And please subscribe or follow Unshackled Life Ministries on Facebook.

Unshackled Life Ministries is grateful for every person that reads the daily Unshackled Moments, the weekly Unshackled Echo and or listens to the Audio Messages. I want to thank those who have clicked "like" on something that blessed or ministered to them on social media, commented on the blog or replied to an email subscription. It is encouraging to know that God is using this ministry to help and bless others. Please remember that if God used something from this ministry to help, encourage or bless you, it could also bless someone else. Would you help get the devotions and sermons to more people by sharing this? Hitting the share button or forwarding this to a friend will help us reach more people with the good news of freedom and the encouragement to live an Unshackled Life. Thank you and God bless.

Unshackled Moments ~ April 10, 2018 ~ Freedom Hymn

I push, I pull

Go back and forth finding myself pounding on a locked door

I try to make it out alone without your help

But I know I'll never win this war

I can never be, never be, free without you

I can never be, never be, me without you

This is the sound of chains breaking

This is the beat of a heart changing

This is a song of a soul forgiven

This is my freedom hymn

The above is the opening  verse and the first part of the chorus  of Freedom Hymn by Austin French. I heard it for the first time last Saturday night, and I had never heard of Austin French before I pulled out my phone to Shazzam the song. It turns out that he was a contestant of a singing competition similar to the Voice. Freedom Hymn is an awesome song, and I will probably include the video with this., but for now I want to focus on the line This is the sound of chains breaking.

After I listened to the song for a second time a few minutes after I found out what it was, I spent some time thinking about that line. The sound of chains breaking led me to the sound of freedom. My mind went to the sound of the gate closing behind me as I walked out of prison. That was the sound of freedom. I heard that door shut and stood on the right side for a change and looked across the yard at the trees and saw my father waiting to take me home. It was an awesome moment. But the thing is, the sound of that door wasn't really any different than the slamming prison doors I had been hearing every day for seven and a half years. It still sounds the same when I go into  a jail to minister. Sometimes it shakes me up when I hear it, even though I know I will be walking out. That day, it was the sound of freedom.

My mind shifted to the sound of a hammer striking a nail. That is not a sound  that we would normally associate with freedom, and the people standing around Golgotha two thousand years ago seeing the nails being driven into the hands and feet of Jesus, hearing the hammer strike the nail and hearing His cries of pain were not thinking that they were hearing the sounds and seeing the sights of freedom.

Sometimes the sounds and sights of freedom aren't that much or any different than the sounds and sights of despair and anguish and death. They can sound so similar that we may not even realize we are in the moment when defeat turns to victory and freedom rings out. The disciples that dared draw near enough to see and hear the horrors of the crucifixion believed all hope was lost. In fact, the opposite was true. Three days later they knew.

Our personal freedom hymn may not sound like rejoicing. It may sound like our worst fears come true, but if we turn to Daddy in our despair and trust Him, He can use the most horrible sound, sights and feelings of defeat to bring us to the place where joy and peace reign, where death loses its sting and life is full of freedom and worth living. We can't break our own chains, but the good news is that we don't have to. Jesus broke them when He endured the nails and the cross on our behalf. Who the Son sets free is free indeed.

This site is free. If this blessed, helped and or informed you, the best thing you can do is pass it on via the social buttons below. And please subscribe or follow Unshackled Life Ministries on Facebook.

Unshackled Life Ministries is grateful for every person that reads the daily Unshackled Moments, the weekly Unshackled Echo and or listens to the Audio Messages. I want to thank those who have clicked "like" on something that blessed or ministered to them on social media, commented on the blog or replied to an email subscription. It is encouraging to know that God is using this ministry to help and bless others. Please remember that if God used something from this ministry to help, encourage or bless you, it could also bless someone else. Would you help get the devotions and sermons to more people by sharing this? Hitting the share button or forwarding this to a friend will help us reach more people with the good news of freedom and the encouragement to live an Unshackled Life. Thank you and God bless.

Unshackled Moments ~ April 9, 2018 ~ Service Isn't Always Sufficient

When trouble comes, do not say: “Why should this happen to me?” Leave yourself out of the picture. Think of other people and their troubles and you will forget about your own. Gradually get away from yourself and you will know the consolation of unselfish service to others. After a while, it will not matter so much what happens to you. It is not so important any more, except as your experience can be used to help others who are in the same kind of trouble.

- Meditation portion of the April 7 entry of Twenty-Four Hours A Day

I read this Saturday, as many in recovery did, and I am not about to say it is wrong. That's because it's not. It's good advice. Much like it's good advice to play the movie through when tempted to pick back up the chains of bondage. Play the movie through is great advice much of the time, and will help during times of temptation. Until it doesn't. We are unable, at certain times, to bring into our consciousness with sufficient force the memory of the suffering and humiliation of even a week or a month ago. We are without defense against the first drink (p. 24 Alcoholics Anonymous) or drug or whatever addiction or habitual sin has had us bound in the past. At those times, our will power, memories, determination and coping techniques will not be enough. We need God.

Just as there will be times when trouble comes that thinking of others having it worse, or what a relapse will do to others or even throwing ourselves into service for others will not be sufficient defense against relapse. When life doesn't just throw a curve ball, but beans you with a sucker pitch right behind the eyes and you can't think straight, you need more than the fact that someone else may have it worse to pull you from the pit of despair and the trap of self pity. It is good to remember that we are not the only ones who have it rough, and that others may even have it worse. It is very good to deny self and serve others. We are called to do that. But when these things are not enough to relieve the fear and despair of life, we need to know what to do. We can't put our hope in relief through service or distraction or seeing someone else's pain as worse than our own.

At those moments when life has kicked us in the gut and we can't breathe and we're scared to death we're going to die if something doesn't change, when all we want is to wake up from the nightmare and have someone say this isn't real or escape the giant we are facing, no coping technique is enough. Not even good things like helping others. It's not that it's bad advice. It isn't. It just isn't enough.

The whole purpose of the life of Christ was to serve others. Yet this service did not take the anguish and the fear away from what He had to face. When preparing for the nightmare to come in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed and asked for another way. His solution to the problem did not come in remembering the suffering of others or in focusing on how what He was going through would help others. His answer came in surrender.

And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

- Luke 22:41-44

Did you catch that? He surrendered His will to Daddy's, and then He received spiritual strengthening. The circumstance didn't  change. His stress level didn't go down. In fact, it was after He was strengthened that He sweated drops of blood. So how do we know that He received strength? Because He rose from there and faced His fear and followed through with what He was called to do. A short time before this moment, thinking of us was enough for Jesus to to tell the disciples He must go to the cross and, knowing that, to go to Jerusalem. But when the real pressure came, relief only came in crying out to Daddy for help and in the surrender of the will, even in the face of the most extreme fear.

When self pity nudges us for attention and invites is to the pity party, throwing ourselves into service of others is a great way to decline the invitation. But when fear and despair come in like giants, bludgeoning us with their huge, spiked clubs, the only place of refuge and strength is to run to Daddy. Just as when reminders of what has gone wrong in the past and what might go wrong in the future are insufficient as defense, surrendering to the Spirit is the only power that can defeat the siren's call of our old nature.

This site is free. If this blessed, helped and or informed you, the best thing you can do is pass it on via the social buttons below. And please subscribe or follow Unshackled Life Ministries on Facebook.

Unshackled Life Ministries is grateful for every person that reads the daily Unshackled Moments, the weekly Unshackled Echo and or listens to the Audio Messages. I want to thank those who have clicked "like" on something that blessed or ministered to them on social media, commented on the blog or replied to an email subscription. It is encouraging to know that God is using this ministry to help and bless others. Please remember that if God used something from this ministry to help, encourage or bless you, it could also bless someone else. Would you help get the devotions and sermons to more people by sharing this? Hitting the share button or forwarding this to a friend will help us reach more people with the good news of freedom and the encouragement to live an Unshackled Life. Thank you and God bless.

Canyons Of Soul

Sometimes we go through life with canyons hug from our soul by what we have or are going through. These places of emptiness and need carved out of our hearts by pain, anger, bitterness, fear and more. Darlene Woodard shares on these canyons and the only way to fill them. The message, "Canyons Of Soul," is about 2 minutes long and was recorded at Nacogdoches Christian Fellowship on Sunday, April 8, 2018. It's our prayer that you are blessed and ministered to as you listen. May God bless and keep you.

This site is free. If this blessed, helped and or informed you, the best thing you can do is pass it on via the social buttons below. And please subscribe or follow Unshackled Life Ministries on Facebook.

Unshackled Life Ministries is grateful for every person that reads the daily Unshackled Moments and or listens to the messages. I want to thank those who have clicked "like" on something that blessed or ministered to them. It is encouraging to know that God is using this ministry to help and bless others. Please remember that if God used something from this ministry to help, encourage or bless you, it could also bless someone else. Would you help get the devotions to more people by sharing the Moments and messages that you read or listen to? Hitting the share button instead of or in addition to the like button will help us reach more people with the good news of freedom and the encouragement to live an Unshackled Life. Thank you and God bless.

If you would like to have notifications of new Unshackled Moments and messages sent to you via email, send an email to dalynwoodard@mail.com requesting to be added to the list. You can also follow Dalyn Woodard (@Dalynsmsings) on Twitter or Unshackled Life Ministries on Facebook.