Freedom
“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:13-14
We are told over and over to love others. It is the root of God’s saving grace and is how God calls us to live - loving Him and loving His people.
I walk to school every morning, taking the same path everyday. I almost have it down to a science to be able to time the lights so that I can make the mile walk to school without stopping. Along my path to work I pass a shoe shop. It’s nothing too fancy or anything, but what always draws my attention to it is that the owner, every morning, is out on the sidewalk sweeping the leaves out of the path so that his customers have a clear path to get to his shop.
The first time I saw this I was a little confused. Why keep sweeping the leaves every morning? There is a huge tree that hangs over his shop that I know will continue to drop leaves late into the fall. However he is still out there every morning sweeping away.
This is a way he has found to serve his customer better. It is such a selfless act to get out there every morning in cold, rain, or heat and clear a path for his customers to get to him.
This is what God has done for us in sending His son to Earth. Jesus clears the path for us to get to God; what we have to do is get on that path and start walking. Leaves of temptation, fear, doubt, or anger may continue to fall, but God’s love sets us free from being trapped by those leaves. He has freed us so that we may live - not continue to live in sin - but to serve Him and others.
Think about how you can serve someone today. It may be helping someone pick up books they have dropped or offering a friend a comforting word, but go out and love others.