Breaking Free: Discover the Victory of Total Surrender
Are you frustrated in your spiritual life because you feel trapped in a cycle of sin?
Breaking Free: Discover the Victory of Total Surrender by Beth Moore encourages women to break away from the “strongholds” of sin in our lives so that we can lead victorious lives that honor God. Breaking Free relies on key passages from the Bible book of Isaiah to show us how to gain victory over our strongholds.
“Strongholds” are those habitual sins that we continually struggle with. More specifically, strongholds are thought patterns and behaviors that keep us from:
1. Knowing God and believing in Him.
2. Glorifying God
3. Finding satisfaction in God
4. Experiencing God’s peace and
5. Enjoying God’s Presence.
The sins which trap us into these strongholds are:
1. Unbelief
2. Pride
3. Idolatry
4. Prayerlessness and
5. Legalism.
Beth reminds us that God wants us to have victory in each of these areas and shows us how our obedience and His unfailing love can work together to bring about this victory.
Beth uses a study of the ancient kings of Israel as an example of what sin leading to spiritual captivity can look like. She helps us to take a look into our past and our family heritage to see how these strongholds might be passed down through the generations. Some strongholds may be a direct result of childhood heart-breaks and victimization, betrayal and loss.
Beth deals honestly and Biblically with these difficult topics that so many people would rather sweep under the rug with a “just forgive and forget” attitude. If you have experienced childhood trauma, this book is for you. Beth is open and honest about her own childhood trauma and the victory that God has given her.
Beth uses the Bible to show us the ideal life of freedom in Christ. She also addresses some lies that Satan uses to keep us from that ideal, rather than attacking individual sin patterns. Because of this approach, this book is highly applicable to every Christian, no matter what your individual “strongholds” may be.
Beth doesn’t leave us identifying our sins but feeling defeated, though! She uses Scripture to walk us step-by-difficult-step toward the path of victory.
The last chapters of this book include cartoon illustrations so we can visualize the steps to “breaking free”. These steps to breaking free are completely Biblical and practical, though not easy, and include agreeing with God about our sin, replacing Satan’s lies with intentional study and meditation of God’s truth, and bowing our thoughts to God’s truth through the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Scripture passages and discussion in Breaking Free not only helped me to identify some strongholds in my life that I wasn’t seeing as being “strongholds”, it also helped me to identify some lies that I have believed about these strongholds.
Satan will always try to convince us that our sin is “not so bad”, “affects only us”, or is “impossible to overcome.” This study has helped to give me hope that, through God’s strength, mercy and love, I can overcome. I can have victory and become more like Christ. I don’t have to live the rest of my life trapped in a stronghold. I can experience freedom in God!