It's Friday, so it's time for our latest Choose Freedom Story - Meet Sarah:
Sarah, hi! How did you find out about Freedom In Christ?
I found out about Freedom in Christ at church when we went through the course all together. When the new disciple version of the course was launched, I decided I’d like to do it again in a smaller group.
So, which part of disciple has had the most impact on your life?
I would say sessions 5 and 6 had the most impact on my life. During these sessions, I realised that as a young teenager and into my early 20’s, I had developed some really unhelpful ways of thinking about myself, based on lies that other people had spoken over me.
I really identified with the starter video in Session 6, the feeling of being stuck and held back in my walk with God.
As we talked in that session about the tactics the devil uses, I had a lightbulb moment.
My unhelpful ways of thinking had given the devil a foothold in my mind and he had used this to deceive me. He made me believe that the ‘lies’ I believed about myself couldn’t be real lies because they were based on my thoughts and feelings, and got worse on a bad day, so I was the one in control of them.
I realised during this session that the ‘lies’ I believed were real lies. It was hard to accept because it meant I had believed some awful things about myself for years. These thoughts and lies had been holding me back in my relationship with God.
How would you say it's changed your life then?
I used to be held back by lies that had been spoken over me and that I believed were true. I also used to believe that my value, worth and identity lay in who my friends were and how they treated me.
Now, I have the tools to break the power of those lies.
I know, deep in my heart, the truth about who God says I am and I know that my identity, worth and value are found in Him!
Since the course, I have been able to step out for God into amazing things that I never thought possible. I still use stronghold busters if something new comes up but it doesn’t hold me back anymore and I get to live in the joy of my freedom every day!
That's great! So, what would be your advice to someone thinking about doing Freedom In Christ?
Don’t hesitate!!
It can seem daunting and scary at first because you have to be real and honest with God and with yourself.
But, you come away equipped to stand firm against the devil and the things in this world that seek to take away from your growth and relationship with God and the wonderful things He has planned for you.
Ultimately you get to go on a journey of discovery with your Heavenly Father, who loves you, created you and wants only the BEST for you!