True Freedom

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“It was during those long and lonely years that my hunger for the freedom of my own people became a hunger for the freedom of all people, white and black. I knew as well as I knew anything that the oppressor must be liberated just as surely as the oppressed. A man who takes away another man’s freedom is a prisoner of hatred, he is locked behind the bars of prejudice and narrow-mindedness. I am not truly free if I am taking away someone else’s freedom, just as surely as I am not free when my freedom is taken from me. The oppressed and the oppressor alike are robbed of their humanity.

When I walked out of prison, that was my mission, to liberate the oppressed and the oppressor both. Some say that has now been achieved. But I know that this is not the case. The truth is that we are not yet free; we have merely achieved the freedom to be free, the right not to be oppressed. We have not taken the final step of our journey, but the first step on a longer and even more difficult road. For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others. The true test of our devotion to freedom is just beginning.

I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can rest only for a moment, for with freedom comes responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not yet ended.”

~ Nelson Mandela “Long Walk to Freedom” (1994)

The smoke has cleared from last night’s fireworks. The grills have all cooled down. For many, freedom will tend to be an afterthought the rest of the year. I’m not just talking about the physical freedoms we enjoy in the United States (and other parts fo the world), but I am wanting us to look deeper into this concept of freedom…freedom of the individual’s mind, heart and soul.

I’ve said it so many times before, there is someone waiting for you on the other side of your promise. The freedom you receive is not just for you, but for your family, friends and neighbors. It’s not enough to just be free yourself, but we must seek to make the lives of those around us better…that they may enjoy freedom as well.

Many years ago, I was given a letter, signed by Nelson Mandela, reminding me of the victories we have seen, and the long road ahead of us in the effort to love our neighbor. People sometimes ask me why I continue to do what I do. It is because, it is my responsibility and privilege to share the same freedom given my family years ago with those who are open to hear. I share in the burden to bring people into freedom…not just physically, but spiritually and mentally as well.

For those of you who live in freedom (which is most of you), be challenged to extend the opportunity of freedom to those around you through serving one another humbly in love. This is a fundamental part of loving your neighbor. True freedom comes with responsibility.

“You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” Galatians 5:13-14

“The oppressor must be liberated just as surely as the oppressed.” Oppressors are in slavery and desire to see others in it as well. My niece says it this way, “Hurt people hurt people.” We must seek freedom not just for the slave, but also for the master. Understanding that love, mercy and grace is a gift…an opportunity for freedom…for all, is the essence of being free.
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How Do We Handle Setbacks?

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One morning, in the diner I was frequenting, I saw an old friend, Marvin, looking morose. When I asked him what was the matter, I could barely hear him. “No, no, I’m fine,” he said. “Just had some setbacks. I think maybe I have to rethink what I doing.” When I asked him why, he didn’t really give me a clear answer.

I see this a lot. When people get down, it’s like their voice gets down too – down to a whisper. Marvin had been on a roll with his new job in a computer game company, taking to it like a fish to water. When he started, he did everything he was asked to do, and he did it fast. He started early; he stayed late. He listened to everyone and he thought about what he heard.

“So then they asked me to evaluate some new game proposals. I was psyched. I spent three days and nights working on it. I had everything together – sales, reviews, industry expectations, stock prices – everything. I went to the meeting with all the suits. I even bought a suit.” I looked at him surprised. “Well, I bought a sport jacket and a tie.” “And what happened”, I asked. Marvin explains, “What happened? I’ll tell you what happened. The Man – the guy who sits at the end of the table, can’t be fifty-five, whose fingers are too clunky to use even a Wii, who’s always chewing on a pencil; that guy says, ‘Its garbage.’”

“That’s all?” I asked. “That’s all. Moves on to the next project. I’m looking around the room and nobody’s looking back at me. I might as well be dead.” “That’s tough”, I said trying to find the words to say. Marvin grumbled under his voice, “I might as well be back at my old job. At least there, nobody noticed me.”

I could hardly hear him again, but I know he’s really saying: It’s too hard. Nobody cares. I don’t need this kind of rejection after I worked so hard. Even when you are on the path, when you know your goals, when you are letting your passion drive you, sometimes you are going to go off the road.

I worked once with a running back in the NFL. He was at the top of his career, then one season, he began fumbling the ball. He’d get tackled and lose the ball. It became such a fear for him, that he was afraid to carry to carry the football at all, especially in crucial situations. I was able to work with him, but the problem plagued him for the rest of his career. Even worse, he took the problem into his personal life. After he retired from the NFL, he received all kinds of offers for business opportunities that he could get involved in. But, he decided not to take up any of them because he was afraid he would fumble it. His fear had become his vision in life. He was shrinking back from life, not rushing forward to grasp it. That’s the way Marvin was feeling as well.

“So do you really want to go back to your old job?” I asked Marvin. Marvin answered, “Yes. No. I mean, I don’t want to get dumped on like that again. What if I don’t have the talent anyway? Why get beat up all the time? This isn’t the first time I screwed up, you know. Even at the last job, they were always telling me what I did wrong.”

During the most difficult times in our lives, we are growing, changing, and learning, even when we don’t realize it.

Think about such a time in your life. It may be difficult to think about, but it will be worth the effort. (And the more you do it, the easier it will become.) Start with something that happened many years ago. How did you react? Did you lash out? Did you pull back within yourself for weeks or months? Did you reach out to others for help?

Now looking back years later, does it seem like a turning point in your life? What strengths did you gain from it?

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Don’t Just Live the Dream…Enjoy it!

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Your priorities are more than just the things you need to do right away. Priorities mean deciding how you live your life – its like finding your style, your groove. You may want to be center stage as a performer, or you may prefer to work out of the limelight. You may be most excited when you are working with a group, or you may find that you only accomplish things by working alone. If you like to work with other people, you may need to be the leader or you may need to be the go-to person who gets the detail work done.

You might need complete freedom to create, or on the other hand, you might need a framework or a clear step-by-step plan. Would money be a priority even when you had enough to live comfortably? Would you like to help people who are sick or deprived of something else? Your most comfortable situation may be a combination of several of these. Probably, though, one style fits you the best.

Your priorities will fine-tune the picture. How do you want to live? How do you want your body to look and feel? Lots of friends or just a few? Many years ago, I found myself having to go through this work on myself. I was traveling all over the world speaking to groups. I was living the dream and it was exciting. But it was also a grind. I was traveling twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four days a month.

One day I found myself looking up at the ceiling of another hotel room and thinking, “There’s got to be more to life than this. I want to go to my kid’s Little League games. I want to mix it up with my friends. I want to be home.” I had my priorities all wrong.

I had to stop and think how to balance my passion, my purpose and my priorities. With a little work,
I was able to reduce my traveling schedule and spend more time at home. And you know what? I actually enjoyed traveling more, because I was doing it the way I wanted to.

Your priorities change over time. You’ll want to keep checking in with yourself, asking yourself if this is what you want and when you want it. You’ll find too, when you start accomplishing your goals, that in itself, will affect your priorities. In fact everything in your life will evolve. Even your purpose may change over time. Andrew Carnegie spent half his life making money and the other half giving it away. He was born poor, but once he was rich, he wanted to give back.

I’ll tell you a secret. You know the reason I was traveling so much? I was trying to be someone else. I had read that another speaker was always on the road, and I thought, “Well, I guess that’s what I have to do. I’m not really doing my job, unless I’m traveling all the time.” There I was again, living my life by someone else’s rules. I was living the dream, but not enjoying it.

I learned my lesson, and I hope you learn from my lesson too. Your goal may be the same as someone else’s, but you have to accomplish it your way, with your abilities, your purpose, and your priorities. Like the old saying goes, you were born an original, why die a copy?

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Change and Challenge

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Whenever we start to tune in; whenever we start to act on the purpose, passions and priorities we’ve identified inside ourselves, we step into the streams of change. In big ways or small, life becomes different.

Many people don’t like change. They’re happy to live within normality. They may even be afraid of change. They want to stay out conflict and storm. But, to believe that you can evade or avoid change is a fantasy. The one thing constant in life is change and you can either change with it or get left behind.

I hope that you are not reluctant to change and that you don’t fear it. If you look back at your life, you’ll see that you have changed over and over again. If you’re not where you want to be in life, that doesn’t mean that changing has failed you – in fact, it probably means that you haven’t changed enough.

Hopefully, these three P’s – purpose, passions and priorities – have given you a thirst for change, or at least a willingness to drink from that cup. But, I also want you to realize that change will test you – more than that, it will proof you. Proof is a wonderful word. In addition to the usual meaning of evidence concerning something, it can also mean “to test for strength or durability.” Change will do that to you. Proof also means “to treat or coat for the purpose of rendering resistant to damage or deterioration.” Change will do that too – in resisting the opposition, you will build up your muscles.

“If you want the rainbow, you have to put up with the rain”.

We all face storms in our life, and we need to learn to weather them. There are three ways. Some storms you walk through. You stay steadfast and remain patient in the face of the challenge. Some storms you calm, with the help of God’s peace. And some storms you walk over. You do something you never thought you could do before. You take a job you didn’t think you could do. You “jump the facts.” You ignore what everyone says and what’s been done before and you take up the challenge. You walk on water; you jump the facts. When I was nineteen I couldn’t get into the university I wanted, but by my early twenties, I was teaching there.

Never let yesterday use up too much of today. If something bad happens one day, learn from it and move forward, because you can be sure that something new will happen today. Life can be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards.

An excerpt from my book, “Utmost Living”

To get a copy for you or a friend CLICK HERE

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