A New Day

By: Pastor Johnie Akers     

Isaiah 58:6, “Is not this the fast that I have chosen?  To loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?”  Zig Ziglar once related how that Harry Houdini, the famed escape artist from years ago, issued a challenge wherever he went. He could be locked in any jail cell in the country, he claimed, and set himself free in short order. He always kept his promise; but one time something went wrong. Houdini entered the jail in his street clothes; the heavy, metal doors clanged shut behind him. He took from his belt a concealed piece of metal, strong and flexible. He set to work immediately, but something seemed to be unusual about this lock. For thirty minutes he worked and got nowhere. An hour passed, and still he had not opened the door. By now he was bathed in sweat and panting in exasperation, but still he could not pick the lock.  Finally, after laboring for two hours, Harry Houdini collapsed in frustration and failure against the door he could not unlock. But when he fell against the door, it swung open.  It had never been locked at all. But in his mind it was locked, and that was all it took to keep him from opening the door and walking out of the jail cell. I remember as a young man, noticing a neighbor of ours who had served several years in prison. He would go out into his yard, and pace as if he were in a small room. Although his yard was very large, he limited himself to the area he exercised in. It was very apparent, he was out of prison, but the prison wasn’t out of him. The bars in his mind were just as real as the iron bars of the prison he had left.  Friend, it is possible to be free physically, but to be bound spiritually or emotionally. Are you imprisoned today? Imprisoned by past mistakes, past hurts, past failures, or past pain? If so, the power of Jesus Christ can liberate you and set you free. Allow God’s grace to flow into your life right now, and receive His total forgiveness. Then, through His power, begin to forgive yourself and others of things in the past that are now beyond your control. In doing so, you can walk out of thedark cell that has held you captive for so long, into the freedom, of a glorious new day.