Stampin' Sisters in Christ challenge 95 . . . Free in Christ

Happy Sunday stampers! It is time for another challenge from Stampin' Sisters in Christ! Today's hostess is the ever youthful Miesje who selected this verse from Galatians 5:1 "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."

The challenge is to make a red, white and blue thank you card. I always enjoy working with red, white and blue, I just think they are pretty colors together, bright and cheerful. I had this set out for another project I posted yesterday and decided to try the tulips in red, white and blue and I like the result! However, for the entire layout and embellishment scheme I totally CASED a Debbie Olson card from February. She lives across the lake from me, so one day I might take a 118-mile swim (perhaps a jet ski?) and get her to teach me how to color properly with copics.

I had a few conversations this week that relate to the verse Miesje selected. One was with a friend yesterday who grieves over the fact that someone close to her won't accept the gospel message. They say openly that they don't want to accept Christ as savior because it would mean they would have to change their lifestyle.

I have known many other people who held this opinion, who feel as though to become a Christian means entering a life of bondage somehow, of eternal servitude. But that verse and many others point out that through Christ we have freedom from the bondage of sin!!! It compares sin to a yoke of slavery . . . what does that mean exactly?

At our old church one saying there was "choose to sin, choose to suffer." Sin always has its consequences. Sin seems so appealing at first, so easy and so widely accepted. But soon that sin ensnares us and we cannot escape, it becomes a yoke around our necks. I am sure you are able to think of many examples on your own, but for just a few . . . spending beyond your budget and the credit card bills pile up, drinking a bit to forget your troubles until the alcohol bottle is too hard to put down, cheating just a little on taxes until the IRS comes calling. What about the fallacy of 'recreational' drug use? In one area of the country I read about this week, where methamphetamine became popular, child abuse and domestic violence rose over 100% above previous levels. The police were overwhelmed and social services could not keep pace.

It doesn't matter whether the sin seems 'big' to us or 'little' in comparison to others, all sin is the same before a holy God. And we and the others around us suffer the consequences of that sin. Worst of all, sin separates us from God. Christ is the bridge, He paid the price for our sins on the cross and set us free from that bondage.

And far from a life of thankless, cheerless servitude, when we accept Jesus we become beloved sons and daughters, joint heirs with Christ. (Romans 8:15-17) Life is ours to enjoy, on both sides of heaven. Sometimes I think ideas are better communicated through music, there is a great song that I love to sing at the top of my lungs (alone in the car or in the shower) by the Newsboys; Free to Run. You can find it here on youtube.

Thanks for looking, have a great week! We look forward to seeing your red, white and blue cards decorate the gallery!