Category: Eternity and God

So little time…


Do you recognize that life itself seems short? If you are past your teenage years, you probably see every year this way. Sometimes when we are young it seems that time just won’t go very fast at all. Particularly when you are in school and you would rather be fishing or playing outside or for today’s young folks, at home playing video games. Time seems to just fly by once you have finished school or have a child and from that point on it never slows down (except in line at Walmart).

Our lifespans seem long, especially when we are under twenty, but 70 years or even 80 is not very long at all. Living beyond that is by God’s grace alone and under His supervision as well. So, what do we do with this amount of time that we are given? What should we do with it? As some country and rock singers say, “Just LIVE it!”; but do we really know how to do this?

Most of us don’t figure out HOW to LIVE until a good portion of it is gone! When we are young, we are going to school and hanging out with friends. As we get to our “adult” years, we are so busy trying to pay bills and keep food on the table that we don’t even think about what “living” means! As our children get older and move on to college or their careers, usually we begin to see things from a slower pace…usually. Then, when retirement hits us in the face, we realize that we have let all of our flowers die and we didn’t even get to smell them.

Now, we are learning about parts of our body, which hurt now, that we never even noticed before. We want to get out and travel and see the world, but our money is spent on pain medication and doctor visits. Life is too short.

That is why we all should be planning for eternity. What is that? Well, it is the other side of Life which we don’t get to see until this body dies. If you are not a Christian, eternity may not mean much to you. Some see the word “afterlife” and think it is a bunch of hogwash, others see it as a party that never ends, and still others see it as a time of reincarnation to fix things which didn’t get done in this life on the first time around.

Jesus called it paradise and my idea of that is much better than starting over or continuing to have fun into eternity. Paradise can mean different things to different people. For some it may be seeing family members that have gone before us or even to be thankful to God for the grace and forgiveness which allows us to experience His true Kingdom.

road2eternityAs human beings, we can’t imagine in our finite minds the wonders of a perfect and eternal place with God as the Ruler and King. Eternity itself is beyond our thinking because even millions of years is beyond us and one million years is just one tick on the clock of eternity. What will our eternity be like? Your eternity and mine may be two different experiences.

If you are a believer in Jesus, then at some point we may meet in eternity. If you don’t believe in God or Jesus and especially or particularly in anything contained in the Bible, then your eternity will be separate from God and all of His Kingdom. The image above shows an idea of eternity from our perspective on Earth, a road which goes into the horizon and we can’t see its end. That is actually a good way of looking at it.

We walk on it every day even though we don’t realize it. Every event in our life is a pause or a stop on this journey. The path is well-worn and wide if you don’t know Jesus as your Savior, but the path to His Paradise is a bit different. It is narrow but just as long, the big difference is that one leads to Heaven and the other leads to a place without God and a place of torment which was never meant for us.

God knows each soul in hell, but they are there by their own choosing. They are in that place because they chose to live their life without Jesus or belief in Him. It is not a place where God sends you because He hates you. God loves you and wants the best for you, but if you choose to follow your own path and your way of living instead of His, then that is where you will be. In your own version of punishment and misery, but not in Heaven.

Don’t waste the time you have to make that choice by being selfish and greedy for yourself. Pray about your salvation and what it could be and then seek Him out, and He will answer you.

What did I not do?


Strange title, I know, but sometimes it seems to be a mantra in my life. I am not complaining about it, but many times it seems that I mention something that I want to do and then something else interrupts my thoughts or my accomplishment of that which I wanted to do. Some might call this old age, some might call it being lazy, I just think that I have too much on my mind at times and the stuff which isn’t important at the time gets shoved aside.

2014-07-16-procrastinatorWhichever way you look at it, I could be accused of being a procrastinator and I suppose I should own it. Getting back to the point, what did I not do: I didn’t make some ham chowder. Why? I don’t know, I am not sure exactly what caused that bit to become shunted to the side in favor of something else. Some might also call this a form of adult ADD.

Whatever you want to call it, this little problem of mine doesn’t bother God in the least. He doesn’t have a problem with too much on His plate or on His mind. Thank goodness, because with all of those prayers being sent up to Him every hour or every minute of every day, humanly speaking there isn’t a person who could accomplish a fraction of what God does every second of every day that we don’t even know about! He is the Ultimate Multitasker of the Universe!

God knows which of us can handle multitasking and which of us can’t. Life is doing multiple tasks on a daily basis, just not necessarily on a deadline! Preferably, not a deadline which may get you fired from a job! The only real deadline that I am currently dealing with is the one which has to do with my sermon each Sunday. God usually gives me the words to speak or the topic to speak on, which for this year it has been mostly involving the book of Romans.

Paul was a very good evangelist and a multitasking individual because he was raised as a Pharisee. He knew the Law and the Prophets by memory and didn’t need to carry a scroll with him as we do our Bibles. My point in bringing up problems with our memory is that we can’t remember all of the things that we need to all of the time. Nor can we accomplish all of those tasks in a timely fashion daily, but God gives each of us the ability and the mind to accomplish our tasks which He gives to us at the right time. 

As the Bible says, “you will be given the words to say at the proper time” and the Holy Spirit will give you those words which you need to speak. I rely on this every Sunday and for every writing which I post here. I am not eloquent enough to spout as much as I have over these last six years between Sunday and all of the little sermons that I put up here. God gives me the words, I just put them down. The grace of God and through His Love is the only reason that I have been able to do this.

God loves each of us in a unique fashion that only He knows. We will feel it when we get to Heaven, but until then we have to live with the grace and love brought to us through His Spirit. It isn’t a downgrade exactly, but our humanity prevents us from experiencing His Love in any profound ways in this body. Seek Him out in your life so He can prove that His love is more than you can bear. I have felt it and it is something that I can’t describe to anyone, you just have to experience it yourself.

Why did you bring me back?


I have read some books from doctors about patients who have asked this question. Patients who had experienced death or as it is called in the media a near death experience. That is not exactly the right name for it, it is death but with a spiritual twist. If God had wanted that person dead then nothing that the doctors or anyone else did for them would matter. God allowed them to return because their story needed to be told, the feelings and experiences which they had in a few minutes or seconds needed to be told.

Many people experience peace and joy and a feeling that everything is fine. Some experience a horrifying and agony-filled few minutes which may change their beliefs after they return for their second chance. The point of this is that the veil which separates this life from the next is very thin spiritually speaking. We can’t see through it, although at times we feel things or see glimpses of someone or some place. We just brush it off as “it’s because I am tired” or “I didn’t really see that, did I?”.

Most of us forget those glimpses through the veil after a day or two, but for those who have crossed through the veil during a heart episode in the hospital or died on the operating room table and are brought back, the experience is too real to forget.

Is there life after death? YES! Jesus said so and He was and is alive now to prove it! He also told His disciples that He would return to take His church to be with Him. The veil which separates our earthly bodies from that eternity is thin and we are surrounded by spiritual beings all of the time. Do I have proof of this? No, I just have faith in God’s Word and it seems that the realm of the spirit was always there, even when Elisha was facing an army in the Old Testament. He asked God to show his disciple that they had more protection than the ones coming against him and he saw them!

The demons were and are everywhere in our world, yet thankfully we can’t see their form and their actions as we go about our daily lives. In Jesus’ day, a whole legion of them had taken over one man and when He told them to get out, they entered into a herd of pigs and the pigs drowned themselves in the lake.

My point is this: don’t discount the words of someone who has come near to death or has been brought back. They have seen something which few people see and live to tell of it. Does life continue after this shell of our bodies dies? Yes, it does. The enjoyment of life with Jesus is there but there is also a place without Him and it is a terrifying place without Jesus.

Our minds can barely imagine a few hundred years forward or back from our point of reference. One thousand years is a long time, but if you begin to think of one million or try to consider it then you can’t take it in. Any amount of time beyond one thousand is just a number to us, our minds can’t process it.

Why would someone who has been brought back to life be angry about having another chance at life? Because, for a believer the other side of the veil is so much more than we can comprehend now! Even a few seconds of life with Jesus away from the pain and mental anguish in this life would make you long to be with Him even more! But, when God sends a person back to this life, it is for a reason…His reason. Others need to know about the spiritual life that waits for them whether it is a life with Jesus or not!

john317Please, read God’s Word prayerfully. Seek Him out and His Son’s Life which is in His Word. Ask Jesus to come into your life and open your eyes so that you can experience His Life for eternity. God doesn’t want you to go to a dark place where He is not, because it is your choice if you refuse to allow Him into your life.

Truth or Consequences


Living the life of a Christian has never been easy. From the time of Jesus’ departure, the apostles and disciples were persecuted by the local priests and by Rome and the Roman government. This has never really stopped, but the face of persecution is different today.

We sometimes hear it from friends who believe that we are judging them when we aren’t. We see the persecution from groups of radicals in other countries and in our own country of America.

Now, it seems to be coming home because if you preach or tell someone a Truth from the Bible, it is labeled as hate speech and you could be put in jail. Can anything be done to stop this? I don’t think that it will get better before Jesus comes back or at least until those who belong to Jesus are taken up to be with Him.

Yet, many Christians in other countries are being killed or put into “work camps” or into prison and much of their suffering doesn’t reach the news outlets. So, unless the Voice of the Martyrs or some other organization brings it to our attention, we don’t hear about it unless it is a bombing that kills many in a church or an open area. If it happens in a jungle or in the mountains of Nepal or North Korea, the country controls the news media, so it doesn’t get out.

Life in “developed” countries like England or Europe or America hasn’t gotten to the point of people dying for their beliefs…yet. We do hear of isolated cases of “radicalized people” killing others who don’t believe like they do, but those are few right now. How will our Christian nation react when violence against Christians gets worse? What will be done to help us? Or will our so-called “leaders” in Congress turn away and deny that it is a problem?

Christians in the past, like five or six centuries in the past, did some horrible things in the name of the Church or even in God’s name. I won’t deny that. But, making all Christians pay the price with their lives today for something which was done during the Crusades in the 12th century is ridiculous. God will punish those who have done things like killing witches who were NOT witches or killing people in the Middle East because they wouldn’t convert to Christianity. That is just as appalling as 9/11 or any of the other atrocities that are happening because of ISIS now!

Seek out the One, true God in the Bible, not one in a book of made up “holy words” by a pedophile who hated Jews and Christians. I promise, God will avenge His own and it doesn’t involve bombs or cutting their heads off!

God has provided a way for eternal life through belief in Jesus and His atoning work on the cross. Seek Him out in His Word for it is the true Word of God. Pray about what He says in it and learn from Him because in the end, all of us will bow and say that Jesus is Lord and King of all!

The Word of God


john317At the very first chapter of our Bible, God spoke into the void and into His creation His will, the breath of God filling all of Creation with all kinds of potential life and good and the possibilities of death and evil too. His very voice is the most powerful force in all of nature because He is the Creator of natural laws and nature itself! Because, the energy of every star, every galaxy and any powerful structure contained therein is only there because of God and His Word being spoken into the cosmos!

In the gospel of John, the very first few words tell what is believed about Jesus, the Word made flesh:

John 1:

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

Jesus was and is the Living Word of God, so it is by Him all things were made and through His power all things, including you and I and every other living being on Earth, live and have their being even now. It is by God’s Grace that we are here to do His work and His will in this life while we yet live. Not the grinding away that we chase after money and fame and family, but living for Him and to spread His Word and wisdom in this cold world that doesn’t know Him.

That is the will of God for all believers and whether you embrace it or not, it is still true. God intended for us to have a relationship with Him and through Him in this life into eternity. We should be receptive of that grace and His gift because it is something which we can’t afford in any way, yet it is given. We are loved by Him enough that He gave Himself, His Son, to pay the debt that we cannot. A debt that He didn’t owe but He knew that it was the only way to balance out the debts owed by all of humanity.

By giving His life, His blood and the suffering which went with it, that debt was paid for all of us. When the Spirit convicts you that you are a sinner in need of Jesus, then you will and you should seek Him out at all costs, even your life. Because He is the Pearl of great price and the lost sheep that was found, He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and He is your Savior and mine, all we have to do to receive His grace and the gift of eternity is to believe in His work and in Him. Like a child believes her father will catch her, we should believe in and trust Him.

Please, take the time to read about Him and learn about Him because He is the ONLY way to be forgiven and to obtain that which cannot be bought…eternal life with God.

Walking in faith


If you have ever been in a church service which preaches from God’s Word, then you have heard this phrase. But was it ever explained to you?

It isn’t some fanciful way of living or some magic way of doing things, but one of submitting yourself to the Spirit of God and Jesus in your everyday life. Being thankful for all that you have, whether it is good or bad, because God is bigger than all of our problems. He Who created everything, takes care of you and me and all who are on this world…not because He has to but because He loves us. On those days when you feel that nearly everything that you do is going wrong, He is still there to give you strength and help you get through it.

madewholeinHeavenDuring the days and nights of those who have to spend time in treatment for cancer or an accident, He is there. In the hospital or the ambulance or on the road going from one place to another, He is with you.

If you don’t know Jesus the Christ, then your life is in turmoil even if it doesn’t seem so right now. Why? Because you are living in the camp of Satan and the world itself. You are doing those things, good or bad, which please you and you alone without a thought to who may or may not be watching. God sees all that you are doing and if you are not His, it breaks His heart but He won’t force you to come to Him. Love and devotion cannot be forced and cannot be given without love in return.

Faithful living and living thankfully toward God for His grace and mercy is something which can’t be done without Jesus in your heart. You can fake being a believer by acting good in front of others and attending church, you can even practice it well enough to be a Pastor of a church and be perceived as righteous…but God knows your heart.

When you die, which all of us will one day, you will stand before God and you will do it with the righteousness of Christ’s blood to cover your sins or in your own righteousness without Him. In the first your life will be an honor to God and you will be welcomed into His Presence, if you stand under your own cloak of self-righteousness then there is no grace and no amount of goodness which will save you. You are without Jesus and His Grace and your every thought and word and deed will be laid bare, without forgiveness. You will be cast away from the Presence of God into the hell which was prepared, not for mankind but for Satan and his demonic forces.

Think about this before you decide to live your life on your own terms and not with Jesus in your life. Without Him we have nothing to boast of but with Him we have everything!.

The wages of a life without Jesus


The wages of sin
Romans 6 

1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?

2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?

3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.

8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:

9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.

10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.

11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.

13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.

16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.

18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

19 I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.

20 For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.

21 What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.

22 But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.

23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

What do you consider a sin? Working on the Sabbath? Cursing, taking the Lord’s name in vain? Gambling? Adultery? Gossip? Which of these would you consider a sin? How about telling an untruth (lying)?

In God’s eyes and in His way of looking at sin, all of these are sins and it doesn’t mean that we, even as Christians, have to do more than one. One sin, whether it is telling someone a lie, regardless of it being a little one or a big one, makes you guilty of breaking them ALL! So, how can we be justified in the sight of God?

Only through the belief in Jesus and in His atoning sacrifice on the cross. If you deny that or if you just believe it because the preacher says so but you really don’t believe it in your heart, then your belief is null!

If I told you that a rope could save you from falling to your death, would you believe it? Most of you would, but only IF you could see and feel the rope! The catch is that the rope will only save your life IF you reach out and take it in your hands and hold on to it so you don’t fall.

Jesus will save you from falling into Hell itself, IF you will believe in His atonement and in the work that He accomplished on the cross when you accept Him as your Savior. There is nothing that you can do to “help” Him save you, there is no amount of “good things” which you can do to enhance your salvation. He paid the price for ALL OF US with His blood, His death and His resurrection, there is nothing that you or I can add to it at all.

Choosing to know about Jesus and all of the miracles and Grace which God grants to you and me through Him, will not bring you salvation. Knowing about a chest full of gold on your property doesn’t make you rich, until you claim it!! It is the same with your salvation. If you have felt the knock on your heart and your life,heard that small voice which has tried to get you to accept Jesus BUT you have chosen to ignore it or you have determined that you will do it later??  Why would you do that?

Are you absolutely SURE that you have a tomorrow or next week to accept Jesus as your Savior? Do you know that you will live until tomorrow without a doubt or next weekend, such as next Sunday to determine that you will accept Him then? If you have this knowledge, I want to know who told you? Where did you get it from?

We are not given a guarantee of tomorrow or next week or next year! It is true that God said it was appointed to us “threescore and ten or if by reason of strength, fourscore years”, but this is not a guarantee! Moses wrote this Psalm, which is Psalm 90, and God blessed him with more strength and years to live to about 120, but our days are not written in stone.

God loves us and He will give you eternal life once you have accepted Jesus as your Savior, so from that point you could say that you have tomorrow or next year, but that doesn’t mean that eternity will be in this body and on Earth. Our eternity is in Heaven with Him, your life and mine may only last for a few more days or weeks or maybe until next year if God wills it so. We can’t boast of planning for anything too far out in our lives and I won’t make that mistake.

Seek to follow Jesus and believe in Him and the grace which we are given because of our belief in Him, and do it daily. Waking, give thanks. Eating and working, give God thanks. Coming home safely, give God thanks. Lying down to sleep, give God thanks. Why? Because it was by His Grace alone that you were able to do those things!! His Grace gives you the ability and the strength to do all of those things and without Him and His Grace, you and I are nothing!

Don’t disregard His call on your life or put it off until you have the time to devote to Him, because you don’t know when your life will end here and you will stand in front of God to answer for your words and deeds in this world. If you have given your heart to Him and believe in Jesus and His work on the cross and His resurrection for your salvation, then your sins are covered by His blood and you don’t need to fear the judgement! Standing there without Jesus as your advocate will be a terrifying ordeal, so don’t choose that path.

Is Satan a real being?


Satan was an angel or as the Scripture puts it “a covering Cherub” at one time. Now, cherub in this sense does not mean one of those fat little angels that flits around shooting people on Valentine’s Day. Lucifer was and is still a very powerful being who is described as a dragon, a serpent, a liar and a murderer in Scripture. He is also described as a roaring lion looking for those he can devour here on Earth. What does all of this mean?

The King James version of the Bible gave Satan the name of “Lucifer” in Latin meaning “light bringer” in Isaiah 14, but the description of him in Ezekiel begins by calling him the king of Tyre. Although the description cannot be of a human being because of the attributes being described.

Jesus spoke of watching him fall from Heaven and he tempted Him in the wilderness after His 40 day fast, so yes Satan is real and he is alive here on Earth now. We see his influence and his activity every day on the news when evil is killing people all over the world for no apparent reason. All of the diseases that Jesus healed people of, or at least many of them, were attributed to demons as the cause. These demons were the angels who had followed Satan when he rebelled against God and was cast down.

Is Satan real? Yes! The world is paying the price for not thinking that he is or rather by placing him in positions of power over it by worshiping money, drugs, witchcraft and other things in this world instead of our Creator, God. Those who are doing these things believe that they are getting ahead in life because of their efforts, when it is likely that he is pulling some strings to get things working for them. Why do I say this?

Because, if they are successful then they won’t go searching for God! Satan and his followers are all about keeping as many people from becoming Christians as possible. He is trying to hurt God in this way because he can’t hurt Him any other way. Is Satan real and do demons and principalities really work for him or with him? Yes, this is true but if you want to investigate it please don’t invite them into your life or your home! Check out news about possessions, which will not be in regular news. Read about Haiti and the voodoo which goes on there, which is powered by Satan and his cohorts.

You can choose to ignore him or his influence if you want, but seek out Jesus in your life. Eternity is a long time and regardless of what your “friends” may say about Hell, it will not be an eternity of partying. Life everlasting in Heaven is much preferred over that!

Apathy is catching


It seems that many church members and those who previously attended church are becoming apathetic about their faith and what they believe as well as whether they need to go to church or not. Is this happening elsewhere, all over the world or is it just here in the USA?

Specifically the area where I live, in central Mississippi, the apathy is catching on to the point of some churches serving food just to get people to come to church on a Sunday morning or night. This is happening in what is called the Bible Belt! Mississippi even has the distinction of being one of the most religious states in the America.

I painted a painting that I called “Creation” this past Sunday. I had told about this at least four or five days in advance of the sermon on Sunday morning. One family showed up to watch and listen besides my own wife and son. I know, I shouldn’t take it personally but painting is like a performance and the reception was far less than what I had hoped for.

creationpaintingHere is the painting which I did while I was preaching about Creation and the Fall of mankind:

The white at the top is not supposed to be clouds, it represents the Host of angels watching as Creation unfolds. I know that I am not a “performing artist”, I am just a pastor, but it seems that this could’ve been something to come see. The only audience I had were children who really didn’t believe that I was painting it to begin with.

The love of God is so pervasive in our world, yet people ignore it and don’t recognize it when it does show up, even in small doses. As Jesus stated, “a prophet is without honor in his own hometown“, and it is very true.

Many people know me in the area where I live. I went to school with many of them and I have lived here for about fifty years, so they have seen and heard many things about me whether they were all true or not! Even when they were true, that is not the man that I am now but it seems that I am still painted (no pun intended) by the reputation that I have had for years before I became a preacher.

I suppose that may be the problem, to some degree. But, I am not moving. I can’t afford to move away just to be a preacher. So, here are my words and my painting, like it or not, it does represent Creation and the Beginning of all things.

 

Reflections


Are you reflecting Jesus or are you reflecting your idea of Jesus? Many people today seem to create their own version of Jesus or God. Not so much as an idol outright, but they don’t like the way that either is portrayed in the Bible or the obedience that is required of them that is also part of God’s Word. These people want to pick and choose which verses in the Bible that they will believe.

are-you-a-reflectionIf you wish to do that, its fine with me, but…what about your eternity? You can choose to believe or not believe that there is a hell even though Jesus says that people will got there. God doesn’t lie, it is not in His nature. So when the Bible says that there is a place where people will be punished for not believing in Jesus and giving their lives to Him, I would take that as the Truth.

When you are the first-born son, genetics usually plays a role in which of your parent’s you look most like. Sometimes you will look like your Dad but have your Mother’s temperament or complexion. Sometimes genetics will skip a generation and you will look like your Dad but have some characteristics of your grandfather, like hair and eye color. God’s Son has His Character in that He can’t lie about anything and He is part of the Trinity so He has the same ability as God the Father, in all things.

Your life and mine, whether you are talking about this life or eternity, are in God’s Hands. He is in control but He allows us the freedom to choose our own fate. You can refuse to give your life to Him and follow Him in your daily life, but your eternity would be most unpleasant. Or you could give your heart to Him, learn everything there is to know about Him from His Word and live daily in His Presence and your eternity is assured to be in Heaven with other believers and with Jesus Himself.

God loves you enough to give you that choice because you can’t force someone to love you, no matter if you are the richest man in the world or if you are God! Love cannot be forced it can only be given freely. Seek out the One Who loves you and Who is Love, perfectly and completely, then you will know real freedom.