When You Desperately Want to Hear the Chains Falling Down
How are things going with [insert name of my tough cookie here]? she asked. I pictured my loved one standing chained to a stronghold and sinking into the pit of hell. Lord, I desperately want to hear the chains falling!
“The same,” I responded with a sad sigh. Nothing has changed. My loved one’s spiritual eyes are still darkened. A lost soul is adrift and seemingly deaf to the voice of the Lord. I watch in anguish as someone I care about deeply steadily progresses on the road to destruction with no U-turn in view.
So, I sit in my kitchen and cry out to the One who came to set captives free.
And He tenderly reminds me:
My love breaks every chain.
I need to ask Him for an extra measure of His grace to fill me up so that His love overflows out of me and opens up a sin-scarred heart to salvation.
Maybe like me. you are praying on your knees for a breakthrough miracle because a loved one is enslaved to sin. The chains of bondage are dark and heavy, and you are starting to despair. It’s so incredibly hard to see someone you love live captive to a stronghold.
Friend, God is fighting with you for the soul of your loved one. His love still reaches into the darkest spaces and sets captives free.
How to Hear the Chains Falling:
Forgive
Offer grace, not judgment. Cover them in love and let go of your list of grievances.
- “Be gentle and forbearing with one another and, if one has a difference, a grievance or complaint against another, readily pardoning each other; even as the Lord has freely has forgiven you, so must you also forgive.” (Colossians 3:13, AMPC)
Pray
Get on your knees and put on your armor. Prayer is your only battleground.
- “Pray at all times on every occasion, in every season in the Spirit, with all manner of prayer and entreaty. To that end keep alert and watch with strong purpose and perseverance, interceding in behalf of all the saints, God’s consecrated people.” (Ephesians 6:18, AMPC)
Encourage
A kind word can soften a hard heart. God’s kindness leads to repentance.
- “Encourage each other every day—for as long as we can still say ‘today’—so none of you let the deceitfulness of sin harden your hearts.” (Hebrews 3:13, VOICE)
Serve
Wash the feet of the captive. Ministering to their needs melts stony hearts.
- “Treat other people exactly as you would like to be treated by them—this is the essence of all true religion.” (Matthew 7:12, PHI)
Welcome
Like Jesus, we need to invite others in. He was a friend of sinners, and we have to have His mindset.
- “You will bring God glory when you accept and welcome one another as partners, just as the Anointed One has fully accepted you and received you as His partner.” (Romans 15:7, TPT)
Want to hear the chains falling? The battle is won on your knees. I’ve created a one-page printable to help you remember God is always fighting for you. Grab a copy and spend the next 7 days focusing on how your God is your Defender. Every morning, you can sit at His feet and strengthen your walk as you remind yourself your faithful God is a warrior, and your victory is sure. Sign up today as a member of the Wildfire Faith Community and grab a copy in our Faith Fuel Library.
Love paves the road to freedom, and our job is to keep laying down the asphalt. We need to keep showing up and serving to see true transformation As we love well in hard spaces, God’s love will bring healing.
God’s love helps us hear the chains falling.
Let’s Chat: What one step you can take this week to love in hard spaces and hear the chains falling?
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