Adapted from The Leader’s Freedom

Every leader wrestles against it—the spiritual bondage that holds them back from achieving their potential. Maybe its anxiety, insecurity, substance abuse, or lust.

Sometimes, we take our bondage, and we hide it. We bury it down deep within us and hope that no one discovers it. There is a strong temptation for us to ignore our bondage or even pretend that it doesn’t exist.

Yet, the more that we try to minimize it, the more the bondage plagues us. It makes us question our right and ability to lead others. As leaders, we must act with confidence and certainty, and we must inspire those who look to us for guidance. Our bondage undermines our leadership from within, keeping us from becoming the leaders that those around us need.

Christ wants us to find freedom so that we can serve him and lead others without hindrance. To achieve spiritual freedom, we must first face our bondage head on. It sounds like an easy task, but it often proves challenging. We struggle to confront our bondage because we fear the judgement of others, we are disgusted with our own actions, or we are too prideful to even admit that our bondage exists.

The apostle Paul also wrestled with spiritual bondage, but he found that confronting his bondage led him to freedom in Christ. In 2 Corinthians 12:7-10, Paul wrote:

“So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

In recognizing our weakness, we acknowledge God’s grace. If we continue to hide our bondage, we hold ourselves back from experiencing the freedom of God’s gift. Our weakness illuminates God’s strength. For it is He, not us, who transforms broken sinners into godly leaders.

Want to learn more about finding freedom from spiritual bondage? Call Leadership Training International’s office at 757-673-6581.