Get Me Out Of This!

By Greg Sanders

Have you ever prayed that prayer? I know I have. It is my speed dial prayer. I often pray it right after I get myself into a mess. I would dare say that one of the most prayed prayers by people is the simple request for God to “get them out” of their current situation or trial.

Today I want to challenge you with a question: Do you want out or do you want to be free?

I propose to you that there is a huge difference between being out of something and being free from something. Most of the time people are so short sighted that they settle for just getting out when they should really be seeking to be set free. Let me give you an example. Did you know that when a person in poverty wins the lottery they almost always wind up bankrupt in just a few years? No matter how many millions of dollars they win they work themselves right back into the same hardship. Why? Because even though they got out of poverty, they did not get free from the mindset. Sixty-eight percent of people who serve a prison term end up going back to prison. Why? They got out of prison but they did not get free from the mindset that got them there. I am sure that like me, you can relate to momentarily getting yourself out of something only to find yourself right back in it again.

God works in our lives not to just break us out of things, but to set us free from things. That is great news but it is also challenging news. Getting free is always harder then getting out. Getting out equals immediate relief. Getting free is a journey of transformation. But the promise of God’s word in John 8:36 is “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

In Exodus 14, the people of God were trapped with the sea in front of them, mountains on their left and right, and an army pursuing them from behind. The people began to cry out to God. Basically they were praying, “God get us out of this mess.” But God spoke these words through Moses in Exodus 14:13 “Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again.” Notice that God had gotten His people out of Egypt, but what they gotten out of kept pursuing them. This is a picture of what happens when we get out. What we get out of has a way of catching up with us. But when God sets us free, His Word promises that what “you see today you will never see again.”

Today’s Challenge: If you are being pursued by your past, ask the Lord not to just get you out, but to also set you free. Setting you free may be a journey, but it’s a journey worth taking.

P.S. If you would like to hear the full audio message of this teaching go to www.camdenfirstassembly.org and look for the message “Facing the Impossible-part 1.”

Today’s Challenge: If you are being pursued by your past, ask the Lord not to just get you out, but to also set you free. Setting you free may be a journey, but it’s a journey worth taking.

P.S. If you would like to hear the full audio message of this teaching go to www.camdenfirstassembly.org and look for the message “Facing the Impossible-part 1.”