There is a tremendous short story written by Pearl S. Buck called The Man Called Dead.
In her short story we are introduced to a man in his 50’s, Drake Forrester, a washed up stage actor, who spends his day calling his agent and waiting to for his second chance at life and the stage. He boasts to himself that he is proud he never sold out to Hollywood and remained true to an art form. However, in that process, he lost himself and the love of his life.
Upon reading the morning paper he finds his name printed in the obituaries. Of course like many of us would be, he is scared that this will ruin his already fizzled career, and immediately wants to call his agent to tell him that it is not true. Unfortunately, his agent, Nick, is not at the office. Drake spends the next portion of the story evaluating the freedom that he could have in the midst of his death. Flowers, begin arriving at his apartment from past cast mates and friends, and phone calls begin coming to his apartment with people offering their condolences. This man, who thought he was forgotten, put out to pasture- alone, begins to realize he is loved and missed. One phone call, from a former love ignites him, when she confesses that she still loved him and wishes that she would have told him that before he died. In this moment, Drake vows to be a new man. He will no longer spend his days trapped by fear in his apartment. He will get out, go to the park and interact with people. Especially, his former love.
Even later when Nick, his agent, realizes that it is all a mistake, Drake cannot go back to who he was. In his death, he has found new life. He is a changed man.
What man-made prison have you held yourself captive in? How have you let fear paralyze your passion and contain you?
Bars and walls that we create around us are just stuff. The are finite. They are limits, but that doesn’t make those of us within their boundaries limited. We serve an infinite God. He is the beginning and the end.
What things in your life need to be let go of, so that you can experience the freedom God has for you? Do you need to die to yourself and be alive in Christ?
I have to die to myself quite frequently. Often I find that my own ego is the biggest chain that holds me back. As much as I trust God, honestly, my flesh trusts me to make better decisions. Who I am I to think I know more than the Creator? God knows the flesh of man. Our flesh tells us we don’t deserve to be free, that what we deserve are the chains that harness us into place. I think that is one huge reason why he gave us His Spirit to live within us. It is no longer us, but Christ within us, and in case you didn’t know God is not deterred my man’s boundaries or satan’s lies that have been spoken over us.
