Freedom--and how to get it....

Now the LORD is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the LORD is, there is freedom....
2 Corinthians 3:17-18

I have had some issues with feeling free in my life. Growing up on a farm in the middle of virtually no where, I had no place to feel free but the grove surrounding our farm. Climbing an apple tree, playing in the treehouse, hiding out in the barn from any one of my five brothers each gave me an inkling of freedom.

While in college, under the burden of studying, working--even though off the farm which I now missed--there was little sense of freedom.

Responsibilities came on like ocean waves with a new teaching job, a marriage, and soon-to-come children. A sense of freedom was hard to come by....

So when I first read this verse from Corinthians, it, of course, caught my eye.

Now the LORD is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the LORD is, there is freedom....

How do I get this Spirit of the LORD?

I've determined that it is an on-going journey and not an easy one. It's not easy because we are all so human. All it takes is faith and trust in an awesome God, so it seems simple; but somehow our lives and others intermingle and we make a mess of things.

I have also determined that the on-going struggle to be where the Spirit of the LORD is is worth it. It's not only worth it, it is essential to life. Plus, there are blessings....

...And, we who with unveiled faces, all reflect the LORD'S glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever increasing glory, which comes from the LORD who is the Spirit.
2 Corinthians 3:17-18

Being transformed into HIS likeness? Sounds miraculous, and, yet, He who is capable of any miracle has promised us this. There is a freedom that surpasses any earthly sense of freedom.

If this hasn't made much sense yet, let me simply tell you that reading the Bible, having an active prayer life, and an awareness of God's presence and guidance allows you to be where the Spirit of the LORD is. In this presence, you will feel as free as one possibly can as long as we call ourselves earthlings.