What Real Freedom Looks Like...

When I first read that statement, it reminded me of how differently I define freedom today than I did when I was younger.

There was a time in my life when I thought freedom meant being able to do whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted, with no one telling me what to do.

If I wanted to party, I partied.

If I wanted to hang around the wrong crowd, I did.

If I wanted to smoke, use foul language, or make poor decisions, nobody was going to stop me.

At the time, I called that freedom.

Looking back now, I realize I wasn't free at all.

I was allowing my choices, my wounds, and my circumstances to control me.

The truth is that just because we can do something doesn't mean we should do it.

The Apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10:23:

"Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible, but not everything builds up."

That verse has taken on a much deeper meaning as I've grown in my faith.

God gives us free will. He doesn't force us to choose Him. He doesn't force us to make wise decisions. He allows us to choose.

But every choice carries consequences.

Some choices move us closer to God.

Others pull us farther away.

For many years, I made choices that weren't helping me become the person God intended me to be. Some of those choices were rooted in pain from an abusive childhood. Some were rooted in wanting acceptance from the people around me. Others were simply selfish decisions.

Thankfully, God didn't leave me there.

As He began healing my heart and transforming my life, I started to understand that real freedom isn't found in doing whatever feels good in the moment.

Real freedom is found in having the wisdom and strength to choose what is good for you, even when it's harder.

It's choosing forgiveness when bitterness feels justified.

It's choosing integrity when cutting corners would be easier.

It's choosing God's way over the world's way.

And sometimes it's choosing to walk away from things that aren't necessarily sinful but simply aren't beneficial.

I've learned that some opportunities aren't helpful.

Some relationships aren't healthy.

Some habits aren't productive.

Some activities aren't drawing me closer to Christ.

Just because something is available to me doesn't mean it's adding value to my life.

Today, when I look at the life God has blessed me with—a strong marriage, a family I cherish, a business Scot and I have built together, and the incredible son He entrusted to us—I can see how many blessings came from choosing God's path over my own.

Were those choices always easy?

Not at all.

But they were worth it.

The older I get, the more I realize that freedom isn't the absence of boundaries.

Freedom is having the wisdom to know which choices lead to life and which ones lead to regret.

God's boundaries aren't there to restrict us.

They're there to protect us.

They're there to help us become everything He created us to be.

So the next time you're faced with a decision, don't just ask yourself, "Can I do this?"

Ask yourself:

"Will this help me become the person God is calling me to be?"

Because everything may be permissible.

But not everything is helpful.