Guest post - Bondage

Today  I want to introduce you to my friend Irene.  She wrote a book (I think that is so cool!) that was just released.  After being burdened by seeing fellow believers be so careless about what they put into their minds, Irene sat down at the computer and downloaded her heart.  Nothing Gray about It was the result.


Take a read of this piece she wrote for Living Letters and I think you'll see not only why I love her, admire her, and am grateful for her presence in my life but also why I highly recommend her book.
She has graciously agreed to let me give away 3 free copies of her book to the first three women who email me privately at chamfam@bellsouth.net.  Someone you know (maybe even yourself!) would greatly benefit from this book.  Contact me and the first three gals will land a copy.


Here's Irene....
It’s a Package Deal


 


Bondage appears to be the newest hype these days. It has somehow been translated into the hip theme in novels and movies. It's depicted as exciting, luring, and captivating. We are led to believe if we don't experience bondage, we miss out. Many of us stand in opposition. However, bondage isn't just in theaters or the novels stashed in nightstands, it is everywhere.


We entertain bondage every day. At the core of bondage is sin and living in slavery to what we have been rescued from. Yet we continually entertain the thought of it. The Israelites were no different (Exodus 12-17). They lived as slaves in a foreign land where they were mistreated and life was difficult. Then one day, God in His great mercy called Moses to lead them out of Egypt for the promise of a better life in a new land. They left in the middle of the night with only the possessions they could carry. Life became difficult on their journey to the new land. In their desperation, they longed for Egypt. They actually desired to go back to the very life they were rescued from. Don’t misunderstand, the Israelites didn’t long for the slavery, they longed for the comfortable life Egypt provided. There was just one small problem. The comfortable life and slavery came hand in hand. They couldn’t have one without the other. It was a package deal.


 


It is difficult to grasp why anyone would entertain comfort when it is attached to slavery. Yet we do the very same thing. We cry out for Egypt when life gets hard. Loneliness sets in and we yearn for the social circles we ran in, but an ungodly influence can infiltrate. Marriage seems unbearable and we dream about the attention we used to receive, but adultery can dig in its ugly claws. Stress kicks in and we hunger for what took the edge off, but an addiction can become our master.


 


We will never experience the true freedom Christ offers when we entertain the comforts of Egypt. The comforts, no matter how small or insignificant, hinder and cripple us from proceeding forward. Let’s remember Egypt but not return to it. Egypt will provide comforts, but slavery and bondage will be its theme. It’s a package deal.


 


“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


 


Irene Sposato

check out her site for more info including a link to a radio interview -