FREEDOM THROUGH RELATIONSHIPS

Are you ever home alone late at night and you hear a creak on the other side of the house? The fear of knowing you are about to die and nobody will ever know… But if just one person were there, you would feel much better.

Or telling all of your friends a joke and nobody laughs? Feeling awkward like nobody is on the same page as you. BUT if just one person laughed, you feel that much better.

What is so important about ONE person making our situation that much better? Because that is the way God made us. God designed us so that we can experience comfort with each other when we are at our weakest.

In Galatians 5:1 it says, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”

We know from reading this verse our ultimate freedom is found through Christ and if we follow Christ, God promises us to be set free of our bondage. But how do we experience this “freedom”? We have to stand firm!

To trust that God has you right where you need to be. To continue to be obedient, even when you think God is not there. To not let the ways of this world shape your opinion on who God is.

What is this “freedom” God is telling us about?

When we are walking through Christ every day and are aware of the true calling and purpose of our life. We realize that Christ’s goal for us is to BE FREE!

He encourages us again in Ephesians 6:11. He says, “Put on the full armor of God so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.”

What is God’s full armor? First and foremost, it is to pray for God to protect you with His power, every day from the schemes of the devil. Second, it is critical for you surround yourself with an army of people that is willing to fight for you, even when the outcome doesn’t look easy.

And through the strength of my army, I was led to freedom.

James 5:16 says, “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”

A year before I left for college, I knew I had to find someone that would challenge me spiritually and help me in the transition. I knew that if I were not challenged, I would not grow. This is where I met Matt Betz. Matt is one of the biggest reasons I am where I am today. He saw something in me and believed in me. He constantly was pushing me to become a better leader, but more so a better person.

Not only do you have to have people that challenge you, but people to encourage you when times are not going well. I will never forget last fall. I put so much pressure on myself trying to perform at a new position in football, trying to get the attention of professional baseball scouts, and trying to be a good student… I was BEAT! People would ask how I was doing and I would always say “great” but deep down, I was struggling.

This is where Tavon and I met. Tavon is the FCA leader at UAB and reached out to me to eat lunch. I will never forget when I picked him up and we started talking, I just began to cry uncontrollably in the car. I could not hold my emotions in. I had many emotions built up from keeping it to myself.

The devil wanted me to isolated. When I was isolated, I was alone. When I was alone, he knew I was weak. When I got weak, I started to believe the lies he was telling me.

Lies like:

“You are not good enough for this.”

“If you tell someone you are struggling, you are showing signs of weakness.”

“Where is God in all of this, Brewer?”

As soon as I began to believe the lies of the devil, I got stuck in my own bondage. This is where I needed my army to pick me up. People with the same mission as me. People with the same values as me. People that wanted me to achieve and do more in life.

My army continues to grow every year. Every time I am around someone that I think will add value in my life, I want to get to know him or her. I am intentional with my conversation and try to ask as many questions as I can.

Trust me, I still long for freedom in areas of my life. As we all struggle, there are several things that hold me captive of becoming who I REALLY am in Christ and I am continuing to work on those. But my encouragement is to find someone that you can rely on to help pull you through your hard times. Someone you can get real with and talk about what is really going on in your heart.

May God bless you and your relationships!

-Brewer