The oil light just came on my dashboard. I can do one of two things with this information. I can ignore it and watch my engine burn up, which would cost thousands of dollars down the road. Or, I can heed it and put oil in my car, which would only cost a few dollars today. It was a no brainer. I put oil in my car.
Suffering is like that oil light. It’s a warning signal to a potential character building situation (Romans 5:3-5). Suffering or challenges should cause us to slow down and ask ourselves, “Is there something I’m doing that is going to cost me big time if I don’t take care of it now?” If the Spirit, who has been poured into your heart, doesn’t reveal anything, then keep using your biblical tools to listen to and follow Jesus. If He does point something out, it’s time to use your biblical tools to discover where the problem is (aka the lie in your thinking) and let Him fix it.
If we heed suffering’s warning signal, our lives can be changed, which brings eternal dividends. If we choose to ignore it by continuing to drive down the road of life doing what we’ve always done, now with a terrible attitude, we’ll pay the price, maybe not today, but definitely down the road.
Life is not just about living. It’s about using life’s daily situations to draw closer to and become more like Jesus. Head your warning lights – let the Spirit change your life.
Set Free Now“W”w

I’m reading a book about Louie Zamperini, who recently died at the age of 97. It’s a story of two guys who survived 47 days in the open waters of the Pacific Ocean and then years in a Japanese concentration camp during WW II.
In the early days of their journey to be rescued, his floating partner, Allen Phillips, told him of a story he’d read in Life magazine about WW I ace pilot Eddie Rickenbacker, whose crew lasted twenty-four days in the Pacific. Rickenbacker recalled that the greatest threat to their survival was not exposure to the elements, dehydration or starvation, but insanity.
Because of this, Louie starting “thinking about a college physiology class he taken (USC of course!), in which the instructor had taught them to think of the mind as a muscle that would atrophy if left idle.” Louie was determined that “no matter what happened to their bodies, their minds would stay under their control.” They would daily play games to keep their minds sharp.
Jesus said the greatest command ever given is, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your mind.” Believers must exercise the muscle between their ears and their main piece of workout equipment is the FREEdom process.
Because exercising is not a way of life for many, it’s going to be tough. It might even hurt…a lot! But as you practice thinking through life’s situations using the biblical truths given you by Jesus from His word, you’ll not only survive, but you’ll also become more like Jesus, which lasts for eternity, not just 47 days.
Watching life go by creates a mushy brain. Processing life through God’s word creates a healthy brain. Love your God today. Go take your brain for a walk.
Set “FREE” Nowww

Ever had a song stick in your head? This happened to me this morning, but at an inopportune time. I was out walking and talking with Jesus when a song popped into my head. (This is the view I saw. It was even more gorgeous when the sun rose and the colors brightened). The song was okay, but it was a huge distraction to talking with and listening to Jesus.
My walk started at 5:30AM. I hadn’t  even been listening to music! Yet, here I was when, seemingly out of no where, this song popped into my head. I tried to ignore it, but I knew better. The only way to get rid of one song is to replace with another one.
And was this thought really out of no where? Not really. We have an adversary who doesn’t want us to walk and talk with Jesus and will use all kinds of distractions to keep us from doing so.
Only we can stop ourselves, not him! We have control over the grey matter between our ears. We don’t always have control over where the thoughts come from, but we do have control over what we do with them once they pop up on the screen.
Once I realized what was going on, used the FREEdom process to replace the distracting song with a Jesus focusing song, the distraction was gone and Jesus’ presence was restored. Defeat your distractions today by taking ownership of the stuff between you ears. It really does matter.
“S”et Free Nowww

Right at the right time is all I can say. I came across this verse in my BIG reading this week, “Though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again, but the wicked are brought down by calamity.” Proverbs 24:16
Think about this. Where does your security come from that you are a child of God? We become children of God by faith. We also become righteous through faith in Jesus, not through our victories, according to 2 Corinthians 5:21. Victory or defeat doesn’t make us righteous, Jesus alone does. Yet, getting up after we fall to our drug of choice is a sign that we are righteous children of God.
When we exercise the truth, we show ourselves to be what we claim to be, children of God. Proverbs 24:16 gives us another sign that we’re secure children of God – getting up after we fall. If you fail, Jesus is reaching out to pick you up. When you take His hand (i.e. apply His grace and mercy) and start walking with Him again, you’re showing who’s child you are – God’s.
Let God turn your failures into signs of security. Let His truth sink into your brain and heart. This truth brought tremendous peace to my heart this week. I hope it does to yours as well today.
“S”et Free Nowww

Riding a motorcycle is very relaxing to me, especially as there are plenty of back roads to enjoy a good ride without having to get on the Southern California freeways. The roads I take have plenty of twists and turns and ups and downs to make for a wonderful riding experience. I also love arriving home safely!
At my current skill level, though, there is one riding situation I incur that challenges my goal of an enjoyable ride and arriving home safely – going over hills where I can’t see the road ahead. This situation causes my heart rate to speed up a little. In order to make it up the hill I have to roll back on the throttle to increase my speed. Yet if there is an immediate curve at the crest of the hill, I have to back off the throttle to slow down in order to make the curve safely. It’s not a good idea miss the curve and hit an on coming truck! Nope, it’s no fun at all.
I’m speeding up to possibly slow down, what do I do? I trust my coach’s instructions. I took a rider safety course before I ever got my motorcycle license. I was taught how to handle situations just like these. If I trust my given riding skills, I will accomplish both goals – enjoy the ride and arrive safely home. The question is, “Will I trust my teacher?”
Want to feel secure? Take a daily riding course – listen to the Teacher as you read His Word. Want to enjoy the ride while arriving home safely? Use the biblical tools/truths your Coach gives you in His Word. Do this and you’ll be just fine. The question is, “Will you trust your Teacher?”
“S”et Free Nowww