“Ebenezer Scrooge!” Jacob Marley called out as he rattled his chains hauntingly in the night. As the story goes, Marley had come to warn Scrooge to change his ways, or he would face the same eternal fate as his former business partner. All the selfishness and greed would become chains he would be required to bear through all eternity.

Thankfully, this is only a fictional story! However, we can also see some truth in it. The sins, hurts, habits, and hang-ups in our lives can become chains that we bear spiritually. We can feel completely trapped by these chains and feel no way out. There is only One who can rescue us and set us free!

This week, we have looked at the things that keep us in bondage to spiritual and emotional chains. Originally, because of our inheritance of the sin condition introduced to the world through Adam and Eve, we were born in bondage. Every single one of us! Unfortunately, this means that we are all destined for death and separation from God apart from the deliverance from our Savior and Lord, Jesus.

Jesus came to the earth, lived a completely sinless life, and became the perfect sacrifice for our sins. Because of His abundant love and His amazing gift of grace, we can be completely set free from these chains of sin and death! Christ forever bridged the gap that separated us from the presence of God. Praise the Lord!

On the other hand, even as those who have been delivered from the chains of sin and have become followers of Christ, we may still have areas of bondage to chains in our lives. For example, we may be weighted down from past hurts or abuse, unhealthy relationships, habits, addictions, insecurities, or hang-ups that have become a hindrance to the abundant life Christ came to give us.

This is where we need to settle in during our small group discussions this week. Not only did Christ come to set us free from the eternal punishment of our sin, but He also came to set us free from anything that keeps us from living the abundant life He died to give us.

The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. John 10:10 NLT

In my study this week, I began listing the things that have been like chains in my own life, personally. Perhaps you can relate to some of these. I have been in bondage to terrible bouts of depression, memories of a horrible first marriage and hurts from my childhood, my off and on addiction to food, and bitterness I have allowed to consume my heart from some recent attacks.

Here is the difference. I could allow myself to stay in bondage to these things that have enslaved my heart, but I have chosen to allow Christ to set me free! We are powerless to set ourselves free, but we can cry out to the Lord of Steadfast Love to rescue us!

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. Hebrews 12:1 NLT

We have been made alive in Christ. To continue walking around in our chains is like being a “walker” from the show, The Walking Dead. We are not zombies! We have been made alive in Christ! Let’s choose to live!
Go to Christ. Pour your heart out and hold nothing back. Spend time in His presence. Ask Him to set you free. Praise Him. Give Him thanks.
Allow Christ to shed his light in our darkness. He will expose those areas that need to be set free.
The hurt can feel worse before it gets better, but don’t depend on feelings. Be prepared to let go of the things that hold you down. We have the power of the Holy Spirit to empower us to do this, even if we think we can’t.
Choose to believe the promises of God. He has promised to set us free, and we can count on it. Draw closely to Him, and allow Him to substitute our false anchors and wells for the truest kind of fulfillment possible. Rehearse the promises of God in Scripture and hold on to them. “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’” 2 Corinthians 12:9 MSG
Draw strength from others. The Body of Christ is a wonderful thing! We are not in this thing alone!

This, in essence, is the message we heard from Christ and are passing on to you: God is light, pure light; there’s not a trace of darkness in him. If we claim that we experience a shared life with him and continue to stumble around in the dark, we’re obviously lying through our teeth—we’re not living what we claim. But if we walk in the light, God himself being the light, we also experience a shared life with one another, as the sacrificed blood of Jesus, God’s Son, purges all our sin. 1 John 1:5-7 The Message

“Learning to live in the light takes time, patience, and mounds of grace. We will stumble forward, falling more times than we’d like, but if we’re willing to confess and repent (as 1 John encourages us), He will graciously set us back on our feet.”

Meditate on this week’s section from Psalm 107, but let’s try a different translation to allow the meaning to become more clear and profound to us:

Some of you were locked in a dark cell,
cruelly confined behind bars,
Punished for defying God’s Word,
for turning your back on the High God’s counsel—
A hard sentence, and your hearts so heavy,
and not a soul in sight to help.
Then you called out to God in your desperate condition;
he got you out in the nick of time.
He led you out of your dark, dark cell,
broke open the jail and led you out.
So thank God for his marvelous love,
for his miracle mercy to the children he loves;
He shattered the heavy jailhouse doors,
he snapped the prison bars like matchsticks! Psalm 107:10-17 The Message

Assignments for the Week:

Schedule daily time and a distraction free location for prayer and Bible study, but include flexibility so you aren’t thrown by the unexpected. Pray for the Holy Spirit to speak to your heart and transform you through this study.
Read Week 4 from the member book, “Folly,” pp. 97-127.
Watch the Session 4 Video from Lauren Chandler, and read the Week 4 notes from LifeWay Women. All videos are FREE for this summer study!
Session 3 Video
Session 2 Video
Session 1 Video
Attend a small group in the Heart to Heart Facebook group.
Participate in daily activities in the Heart to Heart Facebook group.

Week 3 Discussion Questions

Here is a peek at the small group discussion questions for Week 3:

ICE BREAKER: When you were a young girl, what did you want to be when you grow up?

Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death,
prisoners in affliction and in irons,
for they had rebelled against the words of God,
and spurned the counsel of the Most High. Psalm 107:10-11 ESV

QUESTION 1: Can you think of a time you thought, “If this happens, then I will be fulfilled.” Did it really fulfill you?

So he bowed their hearts down with hard labor;
they fell down, with none to help.
Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress. Psalm 107:12-13 ESV

QUESTION 2: Can you identify some chains you have carried in your life? How did you become free? Or, can we pray for you today to be set free?

He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and burst their bonds apart. Psalm 107:14 ESV

QUESTION 3: How would your life be changed if you were to surrender your chains to Christ? How can you follow through on that this week?

Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
For he shatters the doors of bronze
and cuts in two the bars of iron. Psalm 107:15-16 ESV

QUESTION 4: Did you read anything this week, either in Scripture or in the study, that encouraged you concerning your hurts, hooks, or hang ups? Or, did you read anything you can use to encourage someone else?

Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. Psalm 107:6 ESV

QUESTION 5: Have you ever experienced Christ rescuing you? Tell us about it.

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1 NIV

QUESTION 6: What stands out to you from this week of study?

Reading Schedule

June 19-25, Study Week 1: A Call to Worship, pp.10-33; Week 1 Video
- Small groups: Introduction. No need to ready anything ahead of time.
June 26-July 2, Study Week 2: The Desert, pp. 34-65; Week 2 Video
- Small groups: Discuss Week 1
July 3-9, Study Week 3: Chains, pp. 66-95; Week 3 Video
- Small groups: Discuss Week 2
July 10-16, Study Week 4: Folly, pp. 96-127; Week 4 Video
- Small groups: Discuss Week 3
July 17-23, Study Week 5: Storm, pp. 128-155; Week 5 Video
- Small groups: Discuss Week 4
July 24-30, Study Week 6: Gratitude, pp. 156-181; Week 6 Video
- Small groups: Discuss Week 5
July 31-August 6, Week 7 Video, pp. 182-185
- Small groups: Discuss Week 6

How This Works

Register by leaving your name and email address below. Tell us where you are from and what you hope to glean from this study in the comments too!
Subscribeto this site to receive future updates by email. Enter your email address in the field to the right, and then click the subscribe button.
Join our closed Facebook group, Heart to Heart Ministries, for weekly interaction, activities, videos, and daily devotions. Closed means that no one will be able to see our posts unless they are members of the group. This is for your safety and privacy.
Small Groups:You will find the schedule for small groups at the top of our Facebook page, and the groups will take place there. All groups are open attendance, and you are welcome to join any group that is convenient for you. All you need to do is show up at the scheduled day and time, and the discussion will take place underneath the group photo

Follow my ministry page on Facebook, Shari Lewis Ministries,to stay up-to-date on ministry events and for daily prayers, nuggets of wisdom and encouragement for your life, photos that you are welcome to share, and faith building blog posts to strengthen you in your walk with Christ.
Purchase the study book. You may purchase online through the links below or pick up a book from Lifeway in person.

*We will specifically be going through the member book, NOT the trade book; however, if you require an electronic version, you may purchase the trade book instead.

Lifeway: member book – printed version

Lifeway: member book – eBook

Amazon: member book – printed version

Amazon: trade book – hard cover, Kindle, Audible, Audio CD