By Rae Lynn DeAngelis
On February 19, 1519, Spanish explorer Hernando Cortes set sail for Mexico with 11 ships, 13 horses, 110 sailors, and 553 soldiers. He was tasked with colonizing the new territory. The odds were stacked against him. Two previous missions had already failed.
Sometimes the greatest obstacle to success is the fear of future failure.
Cortes did something that some might consider radical. After making landfall, he told his men to burn the ships. By doing so, he made a strong statement: Going back is not an option.
While I don’t endorse taking territory that doesn’t belong to us, I do believe there is a whole lot of territory that we as believers can lay claim to yet willingly forfeit simply because we are unwilling to let go of the past.
Friends, living in freedom is a right that’s ours for the taking, given to us by our Creator. “And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free…” (Genesis 2:16 NIV). God also pronounced, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground” (Genesis 1:28 NIV).
God not only gave us freedom, He also gave us the right to rule.
If God created us to be both free and to rule, how is it that so many believers are still living in bondage?
You might say, “Well, sin, of course. Sin entered the world and everything changed.”
True, sin did enter the world. But then Jesus Christ also entered the world. He died and rose again. Jesus nailed our sin to the cross. As believers, we really can’t use that as an excuse. God made a way for us to come back to a state of freedom. “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36 NIV).
Dictionary.com states it this way: bondage is the state of being bound by or subjected to some kind of external power or control. Whether real or only perceived, suppression can come in many different forms: physical, spiritual, emotional, relational, even financial.
I think Hernando Cortes was on to something here. What if we used a similar mentality to not only live-in-freedom, but to have dominion over our everyday life?
Are you feeling stuck, unable to move forward? Are you stuck in a pattern of two-steps-forward, three-steps-back?
Friends, it’s time to burn the ships! Freedom is your right, your inheritance. You simply need to claim it.
Here are a few practical ways to burn the ships that have been making it far too easy for you to go backward rather than forward. It’s time to advance into your personal promised land, a land flowing milk and honey, hope and joy, freedom and prosperity.
Financial debt? Cut up your credit cards and stop taking out loans.
Unhealthy relationships? Sever ties with people who are toxic or abusive.
Substance addiction? Remove the temptation? Throw it away and stop buying it.
Are you in bondage to the number on the scale? Stop weighing yourself, or better yet, throw the scale away.
Do you find yourself struggling to let go of anger and bitterness? Write a letter of forgiveness, and let go of past grievances. Remember, forgiveness is a gift you give yourself. You have a faithful Judge who arbitrates fairly. Trust His higher ways.
Friends, the choice is yours. You can stay stuck, or you can burn the ship.
I say, Burn baby burn!”
“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (2 Corinthians 3:17 NIV).
“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” (Galatians 5:1 NIV).
Need a little motivation? WATCH THIS!
