Volume 25, Issue 3
WisconsinChristianNews.com
Page 35
An Amazing Journey
By
Lynn
books at the end of the month. We are on a fixed income from retire- ment funds and Social Security. We do produce some extra from our maple syrup and asparagus sales, but we can’t believe how far the money goes, for our budget, even being able to help some other people at times. It’s like the loaves and the fish, we take some finances out of the basket, but the basket never gets empty. Amazing. I am not saying that I never face difficult times. I do, like the 7-foot waves. Each wave was a challenge to climb up then crash down over the top and then not fill the boat with water as we met the next wave. We did take on water, I was aware that both bilge pumps were running. Each wave was met with prayer and a trust that God would help us through, one wave at a time. We both knew that if the boat capsized, we would only have 20 minutes to live. The cold water of Lake Superior gives you only that long before hy- pothermia sets in. It would be 3 miles and well over a hundred waves, be- fore they started to subside, some- what, as we neared the western shore. I don’t ever want to experi- ence that trip again. We now have two sleeping bags and a small tent on board. We will try to get the boat to safe harbor on the other side of the island, make a phone call to our cabin’s owner and we will stay overnight on the island or until the wind dies down. I have learned, on the sea or off the sea, in all the difficult or hard times we face in life, we can use the tools, knowledge and experience God has given to us, but we always need the factor of trusting God to do for us, what we cannot do for ourself. One wave, one obstacle, at a time. We have a supernatural God and when we put our trust in Him and in His Word, He will do supernatural things in our lives. The journey to learn this has been absolutely amazing. It will be for you as well. Trust and follow Him. Lynn Fredrick is the author of “Stand Firm.” Stand firm over sin. Stand firm in your faith. LynnFredrick.com
Fredrick June 2024
In following up to my last month’s article, I want to ask, did you burn a bridge back to your past
sin(s)? Maybe, if you are like I was, you still have some more bridges to burn. Congratulations, if you have or have started! God will indeed bless your decision to not go back. If you are sitting on the opposite side of the bridge from all you have known and the path ahead is a foreign land, don’t feel alone. Others have been where you are and we can learn from them, how to find our way through the unknown wilderness ahead. I be- lieve a great example to follow is Is- rael’s exodus from Egyptian bondage to the promise land. Addic- tion or any habitual sin can be and eventually does become a bondage that is hard to break free from. When Israel broke free and walked away from their oppression and bondage, they had a tendency to want to go back. All they knew was back there, even if it was bondage, they were cautious and fearful of the unknown that was ahead. They knew how to get along and survive in bondage but not in freedom. God brought them to a place that is similar to the bridge I wrote about last month, only in their story it was a sea that they could not cross. With the Egyptian Pharoah and his army storming down on a defenseless people, cornered, with their back to the sea, they cried out that it would have been better to stay in bondage than to die out here in the wilderness. How similar for us who are leaving an addiction or habitual sin — the pull to go back can be very strong. But read the story, Exodus 12:31-ch. 14, or the whole book. God was be- ginning to teach the people of Israel a very important lesson and they were reluctant, even stubborn, to learn it. God protected them with a pillar of fire and then opened the sea so they could cross on dry land. As the Egyptian army pursued, God closed the sea and destroyed Pharoah’s whole army. What was the lesson? God wanted His follow- ers to trust Him for everything. When the sea closed, now there was no way back. There was only one way to go, into the wilderness in search of this unknown place, the promised land. We, who are leaving sin(s) be- hind need to close the sea or burn the bridge to being able to go back and then take the first step forward, trust God in that step and every step thereafter in our journey to the prom- ised land for us. Trusting God in and for all things is easy said, not so easy to practice. When I started burning bridges, I had a lot of fear. Who was going to take care of me? I had only truly trusted one thing…me. If I couldn’t make sure my needs and wants were taken care of, what was I to do? Ever since my sexual exploitation at 9 years old, I didn’t trust anyone, I schemed, manipulated and conned my way to get what I wanted and
what I thought was best for me. The problem was, I could never meet what I thought were my needs or what would bring me happiness, ful- fillment and contentment. I was al- ways wanting and unfulfilled. I often have said that I didn’t throw myself at the feet of God because, based on my study, I was making the best pos- sible and knowledgeable decision. I had run out of things to try; I became His by default. I laid at His feet and moaned, “God help me.” I was at step one of the well-known Twelve Steps before I ever went to a recov- ery meeting. “I was powerless over sin and my life was unmanageable as a result.” But was I ready to do step 2, “come to believe that a power greater than me, God, could restore my life.” Was I truly ready to do the next step? “Turn my life and my will over to God.” These are trust steps and even though I was a born again, bap- tized by immersion, Christian be- liever with a 4- year Bible College degree, I did not know how to trust God. I did not know how to trust any- one but myself. I don’t want to recall all the steps to learning how to trust God. I wrote a book on that. I will say that it is not easy, requires great effort, at times, and a lot of practice. I want to tell some of the story looking back from where God has brought me to. Per- haps it will encourage you to invest the effort. Looking back at my first step to trusting God, I sum up the last 31 years with, what an amazing journey and an awesome adventure! A great man, used of God, asked me, “how does God work and speak into peo- ple’s lives?” The answer is, through His Word and through other people. Through Scripture memory and practicing to implement it into my be- havior, God has transformed my life. I couldn’t see it in the beginning, but now all I can say is “oh my” and “thank you Lord.” All the people are new in my life, the bad apples, so to speak, are re- placed by Godly people. Several times there have been extraordinary people. One was a senior citizen that came to work for me and repar- ented me in many ways, over many years. Another time, when my wife and I were considering marriage but were fearful because of past expe- riences, we were traveling to visit my parents in northern Minnesota. We stopped at a huge book store on the
way, a place we knew no one. As we were exiting to store, a gentle man stood before us and said “you two… be happy together.” Several steps outside the glass entry, we looked back, the man was nowhere to be seen. The most extraordinary was on Lake Superior. I have great respect and sometimes fear of that lake. Once we were caught off guard by 7- foot waves in a 20-foot bass boat. 4 miles of, death type, waves and se- rious prayer to get back to shore. Thank the Lord we did. We always check the forecast, but the lake can change in a moment. It’s why the lo- cals call it a sea. We were on Long Island, again, several years ago and the wind started to pick up, the waves went from calm to 3 feet and growing, I was beached on shore lis- tening to the marine band radio and the new marine forecast update, a small craft advisory was just put in place. I was getting nervous. As I was listening, a bronze hand ap- peared on the side of the boat next to mine. I looked up at a very tall man, probably 6’8” or more, very muscular build, dark tan, wearing only swim trunks and a gold chain. He said, “can I help you?” I explained the situation and my fear and he said, pointing at a big sail boat, the kind you can see from miles away, anchored just outside the sand bar 50 yards from where we were talk- ing, “you can tie off behind me and I will take you back.” I was a bit intim- idated. How did this giant of a man and a big sail boat all of a sudden be in my presence? I told him I needed
to get my beach combing wife and get going before it got worse. I went down the beach to get Terry. I told her of the situation and the man who was now nowhere to be seen, but the big sail boat was still there facing the direction we would have to travel 4 miles to safety. We made the trip, although it was again a treacherous trip. We landed the boat, pulled out, parked at our cabin, looked back and the sail boat was still facing us. The sails went up and the ship slowly turned and sailed directly out to sea. No one sails out to sea just before dark. At least not any of the people I know. For me this was Psalm 91 come to life. God gave an angel charge over my wife and I and sent him to help us and to be there to save us from danger if need be. Today I have absolute confidence that God is with me, directing my steps, and protecting me. His prom- ise that He will never leave me or for- sake me is rock solid and I now know, from experience, that not one of His promises have ever failed. Amazing! My only regret is not tying off behind His boat and experiencing a safe ride, on the sea, from what I believe was an angel. I have tested God’s promises, I have used His word in the face of temptation and it has proven to be flawless in defeating the power of Satan. He has and continues to meet all of my needs spiritually and phys- ically. I don’t think I could possibly be more content in life. My wife and I often comment, es- pecially when we balance our check
Free d Free om om From Pornogr Pornography & Sexual Sin www.LynnFre d rick.com
Watch the online video and then share it with your friends. (Self publishing needs help). If you decide to read my book, please give it a 15+ word review on Amazon.com
STAND FIRM is the story of my journey as God led me out of addiction into the freedom found only in His grace. STAND FIRM is my story, but also a Bible- based guide of how to use the divine power of God to transform a person’s life.
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