Spikes...

Last night Julie and I were having dinner with some friends who recently moved to town from California. The conversation turned to the predicament we as parents sometimes face in how far do we allow our children to play "outside of our earshot and eyeshot." Our friends mentioned that their home in California had a very small backyard and for the first month of two living in their new, very spacious home and yard their children still played within the former "blueprint" of their previous yard even though the children had acres in which to freely roam.

My iWitness...

That conversation reminded me of an incredible phenomenon.

Have you ever been to the circus that is traveling through town? Next time you do, go check out the elephants. If you get there early enough to see the circus workers setting up the tents you will see them driving four foot long spikes into the ground. The elephant keepers will then walk the elephants over to these spikes and hook a chain to the spike which is then attached to the elephant's back leg. The elephant will never move more than the chain will allow.

Do you really think that a four foot spike driven into the ground with a five to six foot chain attached to it has the ability and strength to keep an elephant in one place for hours on end?

The reality is that the elephant could rip the spike right out of the ground with the ease of you pulling your foot out of wet sand on the beach.

Then the question that is begging to be answered is, "Then why won't the elephant move freely about?"

The answer is quite terrifying...
When the elephant was just a baby, it was attached to a four foot spike by a chain and as a baby the elephant could not pull away from the spike. As the elephant grows, the elephant never believes that it is strong enough to pull away from the confines of the restricted area.
And here is the terrifying part... And so the elephant never does.

The apostle Paul proclaims, "For freedom, Christ has set us free." (Galatians 5. 1)

I am wondering today if there are any of us out there that are living a life attached to some chain which is attached to some "spike" that we were told long ago would hold us, capture us, restrain us, keep us in line, restrict us, imprison us all in the name of religion, piety and "good Christian living."

I am wondering today if there are any of us out there who would be courageous enough to pull on these chains a little bit and experience a new sense of freedom that has never before been enjoyed.

I am wondering today if there are any of us out there who would be bold enough to rip the spikes right out of the ground and throw them into the trash heap.

I am wondering today if there are any of us out there who are ready to live a life of freedom.

The only "spikes" that served any positive purpose were the three spikes of love that held Jesus to the cross so that we could live a life of freedom and never, and I mean never be held down by a "spike" ever again!

And that's my iWitness...
Laugh often and Fear not!
David!