Freedom in the Promised Land
Posted on May 5, 2015 in Uncategorized
“For this reason, I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which
is in you…For the spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives
us power, love and self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:6-7
I know I have told you this before, but I love the Old Testament. The Israelites had been in captivity for 430 years. Slaves to the Egyptians. Barely surviving. They had been beaten, gone hungry and done without. They had made bricks, hundreds of them, thousands of them. They had seen their mothers weep and their sons murdered. They had learned not to make eye contact, but to simply obey and work hard, very hard. They understood captivity. Slavery was simply their lot in life. Likely they welcomed the darkness at nightfall. It was the coolest time of the day and it meant reprieve. They could lay down their tools and retreat even if only for a few short, dark hours. They may have been most comfortable in the dark. There was no hope, there was only the understanding that tomorrow would be like today until…Moses.
Moses was different. He talked differently. He was bold and he had the audacity to make eye contact with Pharaoh. Not only that, he demanded freedom. He spoke of God, I AM…and He seemed to know Him. The Israelites had watched as the Great I Am brought plague after plague against the Egyptians because they would not release the Israelites to go and worship Him. But this one was the worst…the firstborn of every home without the blood of a lamb on the doorpost would be killed. That’s what Moses had told them. To cover their doorposts with the blood of the lamb and to go inside.
Exodus 12:31 “During the night Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Up! Leave my people, you and the Israelites! Go worship the Lord as you have requested.”
Can you imagine Moses excitement and haste? He must have run as fast as he ever had down the streets and from house to house. “Up! Let’s go…you are no longer a slave. You do not have to exist this way any longer. God has set you free.”
You see, Moses wasn’t a slave. He knew freedom and he carried a torch….
Moses had had his own experience with the Lord where the Father confronted Moses sin of murder that had him in solitary confinement on the Midean hills watching sheep. There in front of a burning bush, the chains that bound Him melted away…and he grabbed a torch and headed back to his people to declare to them the same freedom he had experienced.
That is a beautiful parallel to the ministry that takes place at CareNet people who have been set free and handed a torch by the Great I Am to journey into the darkness to declare hope and freedom to those still captive.
Many of those we have the privilege to serve are bound by circumstance, sin, insecurity or fear.
- Parents who would have never thought abortion was an option until it was their teenage daughter facing a pregnancy as a junior in high school…bound by fear.
- A teenage boy who struggles with an addiction to pornography is captive to lust and shame.
- A young mom who works 40 hours a week but still can’t seem to make ends meet for her 2 children and then the baby got sick and she had to miss work. She is captive to poor choice and circumstance.
Those in bondage are in need of a hope that comes from a person who has tasted His freedom and now carries a torch that breaks through darkness and hopelessness and declares, “Up! Let’s go…you are no longer a slave. You do not have to exist this way any longer. God has set you free.”
Over the past 27 years, CareNet has touched over 111,000 clients and that number does not include the teens and preteens who have participated in our mentoring programs. Last year alone we served 14,922 clients. These are clients coming into the center for services.
CareNet has grown from one small office on Coulter to 4 offices…our MediPark branch, the Northeast branch located just off Amarillo Boulevard on Polk Street, our Canyon Branch and the Southeast branch located at 34th and Osage
Our ministry is three-fold, we serve men, women, teens and families before they find themselves in an unplanned pregnancy, we minister to people in the midst of their crisis, and then we continue to journey with them following that situation. All of our services are free of charge and confidential. We don’t receive any state or federal funding…all of our support comes from churches, private grants and from individuals like you.
CareNet is a pro-life ministry and we are called and committed to carry the torch for scared and hurting women and families faced with a pregnancy that holds them captive to the fear of what tomorrow will hold or what others will think.
In 2014, 346 pregnant women came through our doors seeking an abortion, and of those 338 chose life!
I mentioned that 2014 was a year in which we saw the Lord do some miraculous things…
I would like for you to see these stats comparing 2013 to last year 2014.
Salvations:
2013 – 91
2014 – 120
Pregnant women considering abortion:
2013 – 81 with 71 choosing life
2014 – 346 with 338 choosing life
Total client visits:
2013 – 10,978 that is an average of 915/month
2014 – 14,922 that is an average of 1,244/month
*There are approximately 2,500 pregnancy centers across the country. An average center serves between 80-100 clients each month…we are average over 1200 each month between our 4 centers.
Truly we serve a great God!
There are so many wonderful services offered that I simply don’t have the time to share all of them. We would love to invite you to come to lunch at one of our locations and we will give you a tour. Before the end of your lunch hour, I promise you that you will feel a personal connection with the ministry. If you are interested in that, please contact Nancy at 806-354-2288, and we can set that up.
Exodus 12:42 “Because the Lord kept vigil that night to bring them out of Egypt, on this night all the Israelites are to keep vigil to honor the Lord for generations to come.”
The Israelites were to observe the feast of Passover each year from the time they were delivered from the Egyptians forward to remind the generations to come of the strength and faithfulness of the Lord.
All of us who are former slaves understand the importance of remembering our captivity. As an 18 year old senior in high school, I was bound by rebellion and insecurity and compromised all that my family valued to bow my knee to a pharaoh that took the form of fitting in and sin. I remember when He found me or at least when I noticed He was there…it was just months after having had an abortion. I was broken, ashamed, and hopeless and a slave to the secret of the terrible things I had done. Much like the Israelites, darkness had almost become a friend to me, because it was easier to hide there.
But then in the distance, through this amazing ministry, I saw their torches in the distance. Torches carried by others who had been held captive, but now knew freedom in Christ who came for me, “You are no longer a slave. He has set you free. It’s this way!”
Sure coming out of captivity can be a long walk and we learn a lot along the way. But the more steps we take towards Him, the more that flame He has entrusted to us grows and is fanned into a burning torch. A torch that we are to use to go into darkness and declare freedom to our brothers and sister who are beaten, broken and slaves to their own circumstance and sin.
Oh there is freedom and a promised land…the torch that is the gift of God in us will show us the way….
Learn more about CareNet and donate here!
Thank you for Carrying the Torch,
