The man tightly carried the little casket with two somber women following him. Another tiny casket passed by the corner of my eye. We stopped in front of a man and a woman who had a green little box between them. She opened the wood lid and there lay a tiny lifeless form tightly wrapped in a black bag.
All around me were people with tears in their eyes, waiting for help, waiting for answers, waiting for comfort.
We saw a man in a wheel chair.
“Go, pray for him.�
The two older sons stood beside their helpless father. Pain was stricken on his face. His hands, arms, feet, and legs were swollen. His eyes looked up at us in helplessness.
“Can I pray for you?�
As the request and hopes were asked to God, tears rolled down the captured man’s checks. This man needs hope. My heart breaks. We cry out in desperation for this man.
“There is hope is Christ.�
He can’t move. It took all of him to try and muster out the word, gracias.
As I went back to Zion Gates my mind thought of what it would be like to be trapped in a body you have absolutely no way of making function again. I can’t even imagine!
I asked God how we are held captive. My family has been working through lies we believe and asking God to fill us with His truth from His word.
So many of our lives we have believed these lies. They have held us captive. They have hindered us from walking in the freedom of Christ. They have stopped us from doing all we can do for Him. It is like the man. We are helpless. We don’t have purpose and can’t do anything. But God brings the healing. He brings the hope we need.
Everyone is held captive to something in their life. Be it our very own bodies or the lies that have chained us down, or the sin that encapsulates us.
But God frees us from our captivity from the lies, false accusations, and sins by bringing us the Truth and forgiveness.
Why be bound?
 Why lie in our chains when He already opened the lock?
We are free!
Where is the hope for this man? I don’t know. I don’t know if God will heal his body. But I pray most importantly that this dear man will have hope in Christ. Hope that he will be saved from his captivity of despair and live forever with His Maker.
We pray, we pray more. We trust. We believe that God will do what is best. We listen and obey what He has called us to do. We pray God will be glorified.
“Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
