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The last couple of week’s I’ve been skipping Throwback Thursday, where’d I’d post a links to a few older blog posts that have a similar. I’m not sure how useful it’s been to you all, so I’ve decided return to composing a regular post on Thursdays. Perhaps, I’ll save it until the end of the month.

Anyway, last night I was watching an old movie – the Matrix. I can remember the first time I watched and how it challenged my thinking then, but now that I’ve accepted Christ, I can see the Biblical comparisons. I know this is nothing new, there are tons of analytical articles and essays on the internet that talk about this, so I’m not going to analyze the movie here, but I do want to talk about the conflicted issues I have with it.

I love the movie, but my worry is that people who have not accepted Christ will absorb another meaning from it that may hinder their spiritual growth. It may leave them feeling as if there is no God and that nothing really matters. It may cause them to put more faith in man and cause them to believe that science exists in opposition to God rather than it being an instrument He controls.

It’s just a movie, but like all media, it has the power to shape thinking. There are a lot of people who just sit back an absorb things without really thinking or challenging it. Beliefs are formed and accepted with little or no thought about the truth.

I did appreciate the movie’s emphasis on the truth and the fact that we so easy allow ourselves to be duped by so many falsehoods. We don’t have to be bound by mistakes we’ve made. We don’t have to listen those discouraging voices in our heads. Today’s circumstances have nothing to do with tomorrow. We can change our lives for the better. We can be happy. We are not destined to be depressed. We don’t have to worry about money every five seconds. God will provide and will not allow you to go one day without receiving absolutely everything you need. We are not doomed. Bad things don’t happen just to punish you. There is purpose in everything, even your trials. Growth does hurt sometimes, but it is necessary.

The other important theme of the movie was freedom and freeing your mind from the ways of the world and sin. When you are truly free, you come to realize that you don’t have to live your life the way other people think you should. You don’t have to worry about others will think about you when you decide to volunteer at a shelter, shop at the thrift store to save resources, or have the best home decor. You come to realize that you don’t have to buy a pair of shoes to be happy and regardless of whether the sun is shining or rain is falling you can still have joy in your heart. Now that’s freedom!

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:1 (NIV)

Thanks to Christ, we don’t have to live in bondage another second and we certainly don’t have to accept lies that are aimed to keep us discouraged. We have been set free, all you have to do is accept that good news.

What untruths you’ve been listening to that are keeping you bound? Please share them in the comment section and then take a moment to pray for deliverance and liberty.

Image: Tina Phillips / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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