The Freedom Project Copyright 2013 by Delasi K. Anyah Some rights reserved.

. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical or photocopying, recording, or otherwise for commercial purposes without the prior permission of the publisher. This book is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution- NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync-nd/3.0/. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations in this book are from the King James Version of the Holy Bible. Cover, Page Design and Production: Delasi K. Anyah Condom designed by Nithin Davis Nanthikkara from The Noun Project Syringe designed by Jake Dunham from The Noun Project Couple designed by Luis Prado from The Noun Project Alcohol designed by Julia Soderberg from The Noun Project

Nostalgia
Verse 2 Corinthians 5:17 17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. Message What goes through your mind when you flip through your old photo albums or when you see your baby photos? I don't know about you, but I laugh ( a lot at myself) whenever I see them; and sometimes I smile a bit as I try to remember what it was like in those daysI believe am not the only one who does this. Anyway. Behind the laughter and smiles, there is one thought we all like to push away when we go through our old albums or baby photos; and the reason we push this thought away is that, we feel there is nothing we can do about it. When this thought emerges, we begin to hate ourselves or someone from our past; we begin to wish we could turn back the hands of time; we sometimes become depressed, shed a few tears and pray for way out of the bondage we may find ourselves in. Why? Because we were all born as innocent babies, and many of us never thought we would become or do some of the things we did -and still do-when we grew up. Things we now regret; things we want to run away from; things we want solutions to, and this makes us want miss the old us. The person we believe we were born to be. Have you ever wished you could be that person you used to be? Have you ever wished you could be that innocent, happy person once again? A new person or creature, a better person, God's original plan for you; is this what you want? Amen

They advised us all

Verses Proverbs 31:3-4 Give not thy strength unto women, nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings. 4 It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine; nor for princes strong drink: Message Many of us young folks, have at a point in our lives received advice from our parents or guardians on various topics pertaining to relationships, sex, drugs and probably every other social ill that destroyed the lives of their peers back in their day. We listened to their wise words, and promised never to indulge in certain acts. However as we grew up, things changed. We began doing the very things we promised never to do. Some of us began living secret lives, and this led us to perceive our parents as the enemy. Some of us grew rebellious: a contrast to the kids our parents were advising a few years back. So what happened? Why did we break the promises we made? What caused us to transform into the people we now "hate"? Many of us look in the mirror once in a while and wish we were the innocent kids we used to be. We wish we never had an encounter with the devil. We dream about freedom, but it seems so far fetched. We all have a conscience, and we all remembered the words of advise our parents or guardians gave us on the day we went contrary to them. Why did we do it? Were we stupid? No! We were finally deceived after years of failed attempts to get us to fall. With every failed attempt came fresh water to nourish that seed: a seed planted on the day our parents or guardians advised us. A seed that can only be nourished by one thing: hate. Our parents or guardians cautioned us, but when we got into the world and started battling with hate, our only option was to get involved in the exact same things they cautioned us about. We tried hard to quit, but with every attempt came more hate and this plunged us deeper into the abyss of hopelessness; far away from anyone who could or would ever show us love. How about our parents and guardians you ask? Immediately we fell, and as we were filled with more hate, some of them saw us as either black sheep or bad boys or girls. They were disappointed in us and the love they had for us diminished; the only people we had left "hated" us or didn't love us as much as they did. That was the climax; that was when the seed he planted finally turned into a tree bearing it's own fruits.

It is at that stage that we begin to get other people involved in the "soul-wrecking" acts that our parents and guardians cautioned us about. That's when the evolution from innocent kids to I-feel-likea-dirty-heartless-monster takes place... Amen

Starving for freedom

Verse Matthew 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Message For many, the desire to quit an addiction fluctuates like a thermostat. At one point in time, these individuals feel like quitting. However, when the guilt they feel after falling into temptation subsides, they once again wrestle with, and fall back into the same old temptations: indulging in the very things they wanted to quit. The question is, why the inconsistency? Why are we hungry for righteousness at one point in time, and for unrighteousness at another? It's hard to fathom our double-minded behavior, however, or thankfully, the Word of God gives us the key to understanding the reason behind our falls. This key lies in Genesis 3:4-5, "And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5 For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." Over the years, beginning from the garden of Eden, the devil has taken many people captive by first making them feel they lack something in life: something they can only receive after they have seared their conscience. This is the same lie he keeps telling many of us, whenever we try to quit sinning. To add to his lies, he continues by telling us that we need to keep indulging in what he offers to receive everything he says or has made us feel we lack. In plain terms, he is offering toilet water to very thirsty people till they are killed by the germs in it. The truth is, unless we come to the realisation that, we are not going to get what we want by listening to his lies, we will always be hungry or thirsty for unrighteousness. Unless we realise that everything we need is in Christ, we will always yearn for false pleasures that will always leave us empty, or that will keep us going back for the very things that slowly destroy us. How hungry are you? How ready are you, to trade all you have received from drinking "toilet water", for something real that only comes from God? Salvation doesn't begin after we say a simple prayer we do not understand, but rather, when we call out to Jesus because we are dying inside and are ready to trade all the illusions of love we keep chasing after, for everything He is: He, God is Love. Amen

Pins and Magnets

Verses Romans 7:18-20 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. 20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. Romans 7:24-25 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. Message If we would all be honest with ourselves, we would have to admit that, there are many things we do that we wish we never did or ever started doing. No theory can explain this, and even the knowledge gathered from the fact that, 'hate-filled experiences from a person's past, have the power to send them on a quest to find love in the wrong places', isn't enough to keep us from indulging in acts that leave us dirty and with regrets. The Word of God tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." What does it mean to become a new creature? It means that we are transformed from one "form" to another: from a steel pin to a piece of wood (immune to any magnetic force.) The new change is powerful enough to keep us from being drawn to "magnets". That is the power of the born again experience. His grace teaches us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions. His grace shields us, and as we are told in 1 John 4:4, "Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world." The god of this world has no power over Christ: the new creature. What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, [and if we humble ourselves to receive an abundance of His Grace] who can be against us? (Romans 8:31 KJV) Amen

Looking for God

Verse James 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you... Message Many people are looking for God, but when they find Him or are close to meeting Him, they turn away; their decisions are usually based on preconceptions of who He is. People want to worship a supreme being or a god who can offer them all their needs in this life: power, peace and everything they lack. People want a god they can have a relationship with. We all yearn for a Godly Father because, at one point in time or another we felt like spiritual orphans being battered by the cares of life, which took advantage of us because we were all alone. Spiritual orphans jump from temple to temple, church to church or any other place of worship in search of something or someone real. They are looking for God, and He is right around them, waiting for them to draw close to Him: to understand why He sent His Son Jesus, so that they can receive everything in Him. Amen

The Lamb of God

Verse John 1:29 29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. Message Jesus didn't come to form a religion with a farrago of doctrines and beliefs, or to give people an opportunity to place denominational tags on themselves and others. He came and was sent so we might have lifeHis life , God's life, everlasting life. (John 10:10) He came to free us from the bondage of sin; to give you and me power over our problems, issues, addictions, diseases and more. (1 John 3:5-6) He came so you and I would be perfect without sin, lacking nothing. (John 17:23) He came so that you and I would become God's very own children with a heavenly inheritance. (John 1:12) He came because God loves you. (John 3:16) With him and through him you can throw your past away like it never existed and begin life on a fresh page. He came for you and me, and He will always be there for us. Amen

Mr Human Nature
Verse Romans 7:20 20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. Message Me (Talking to sin): Okay, they win, hail all the people who finally called you human nature. The made songs about you, they wrote books about you and did everything they could (because of you), to tell us we had to live with you. Now people have you in their flesh; they are strugglingand this makes them hate lifebut have been blinded to think it's all human nature. Now let me ask you a question. Sin: Go ahead, I am listening. Me: What happens to you, Mr. Human nature, when a person becomes born again? Sin: ???? Me: They receive God's natureyou can keep your term; and the only way they can have you ruling over them again, is when they begin to accept the lies about "human nature"; or when they start thinking the temptations that come, are just a part of their feelings and not you trying to destroy them again: when they don't realize that, the tempter is trying to repeat what he did to Adam and Eve in the garden. Okay Sin, aka Mr. Human Nature aka Only Jesus can defeat me or whatever you want to be called, our conversation ends here. Sin: :( Amen

The Wisdom of the World

Verses 1 Corinthians 1:20-21 20 Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

Message The world is looking for signs, is waiting for a new drug, and some are researching tirelessly to come out with a new solution to sin and it's side-effects (depression and loneliness being numbers one and two on the list). In their foolishness (in the eyes of God) or wisdom (in their own eyes) they call it is human nature. They tell us we were born to do the things we do not want to do, and that, we will forever remain that way. They tell us all we have to do is to deal with our actions and try to control our emotions et cetera. Does this work or has this worked? NO! Of course not. Is this the cause of the countless suicide cases we hear of? Is this the reason why many people are depressed, and are struggling hard to be happy? Is this why people are living empty lives, and still hoping or waiting for that "magic bullet" that can save them? Yes, this is the "wisdom" of the world. In the wisdom of God and what looks like foolishness to a blinded person (See 2 Cor 4:4), the message of salvation (the gospel of Jesus Christ) is the only solution. This "simplicity" makes it look somewhat foolish to someone waiting for some new drug or technology that can take sin and it's side effects away. This is why God said, Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise (1 Corinthians 3:18). Amen

The Heart of Man

Verses Genesis 6:5 5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Jeremiah 17:9 9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? Mark 7:21-23 21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, 22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: 23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

Message What goes on through your mind when you: watch the news, read the papers, surf some websites or listen to some radio stations? Do you panic because you think the world is totally messed up? Has the radical upheaval of wickednesses and immorality taking place in the world made you paranoid? Do you think everybody is wicked, evil and out to get you? Have you lost trust in human beings? When many people see all the things happening in the world today (the wars, the immorality, the chaos and so on); or when they are duped or cheated by a person they once trusted, they get their guards up and begin to quote the above verses. Okay, so we are told and we know that the heart of man is wicked, but does it end there? Did God leave that statement hanging? No, He didn't. In Ezekiel 36:26-27, God said, "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them." The new heart God was talking about, is formed or received when a person is born again; when a person is born with the incorruptible seed which is the Word of God, and as we are told in 1 John 3:9, with this new seed we cannot sin against God because we are born of Him. We can't be evil or wicked after we are saved because we will no longer be children of the devil but children of God. The spirit He said He will put within us, is His Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit causes us to walk in God's steps by guiding us, comforting us, empowering us; the fruit of the Spirit stated in Galatians 5:22-23 produced within us, come as a result of His hard work.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law .(Galatians 5:22-23) The hearts of some men are wicked because they haven't been saved from the power of sin: the flesh hasn't been crucified. As long as a person is being controlled by the prince of the power of the air (Ephesians 2:2), he or she would be wicked. 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: (Ephesians 2:2) The only solution to human wickedness is salvation and that is what God was trying to let them know. He was telling them that when the Messiah or the Christ comesthank God, Jesus came He would save them (or us all) from their (or our) wickedness. This was the point Jesus was trying to get across: that He is everlasting life and the saviour, and whoever believes in Him will not perish or die in his or her sins. Conclusion If you are tired of the wickedness going on in this world, start praying for God to send more laborers into the harveststarting with youto get people saved. Amen

The Simple Gospel

Verses 1 Timothy 1:5-7 Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned: 6 From which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain jangling; 7 Desiring to be teachers of the law; understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm. Message The gospel is so simple that the devil wants to and has complicated it. From the introduction of strange names of demons into the church; to the farrago of doctrines that make us feel devilish every time we fail to live by them; to teachings that are so confusing that, even the preachers, as Paul said, don't understand what they themselves preach. Paul also stated in Colossians 2:18-23 that, many things that were and are being introduced into the body of Christ, do nothing to stop us from indulging in the flesh. So what is the gospel all about? The gospel is a revelation of the person who would enable us to do the things that only God can do: Jesus Christ. In Galatians 5:14, we are told that, "For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." When the inspiration to preach, heal or minister to anyone isn't grounded in charity, it would be corrupted as we are told 1 Timothy 1:5-7. The gospel is all about love; it's all about God. It's the gospel of Jesus Christ. This gospel is not just about words; it also needs to be experienced. That's why one of the best sermons is loving the most hate-filled and hurt people unconditionally; they can only love us back when Jesus works in them to bear good fruit. Amen

Understanding God
Verses Romans 1:18-20 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; 19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Message Much learning has the power to make one mad. When this happens, doctrines, teachings and theories, that also cause others to slowly go mad are birthed. Learning that is geared at challenging the Creator; trying to understand His wisdom by our own might, can lead, and has led a lot of people down the road to madness. Festus thought the same had happened to Paul, after he narrated his profound testimony (See Acts 26:24). But as Paul exclaimed, he received everything via revelation, not when he was on a quest to understand what had not been revealed to man, by his own power. Paul stated in Romans 1:18-20 (our memory verse) that, God has made Himself known through creationall that we see. No matter how hard we try to explain who He is and what He has done by our own power, we won't be able to; the best way to understand our Creator is to draw near to Him. Creation can only be understood by humbly asking the One who created it for revelation. Amen

Like Kindergarten Teachers

Verses John 21:15-17 So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs. 16 He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. 17 He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep. Message One of the things I love most about my kindergarten teachers (like all my other teachers) is that, they taught me all they needed to teach methe abcd's and how to spelland held nothing back. They loved me even when I didn't know much about loving people, and disciplined me when I caused trouble in class: they wanted to keep me from going astray. They (my kindergarten teachers) raised me up with the hope that, Ia boisterous little boy who couldn't even think for himselfwill one day become somebody; whether I grew up to become their boss, the wealthiest man in the world, their president or any other position higher than theirs, they didn't care: they just wanted the best out of mea little six year old boy. We (each member of the body of Christ) need to be like kindergarten teachers. Amen

Like Jesus
Verse John 14:12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. Message Jesus said, "He that believeth on me, the works that i do shall he do also." Pause! How on earth are we going to do His mighty works, if we do not have the same resources He had? Actually we do. Jesus made the final provision or resource available to all of us on the day of Pentecost. On that day, He sent the Holy Ghost. But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. (Acts 1:8) We have all been given a ministry of reconciliation. A ministry that is birthed after the born again experience. This is confirmed in 2 Corinthians 5:17-20, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God." We are new creatures in Christ: we have the Spirit of God. We are crucified with Christ: nevertheless we live; yet not us, but Christ liveth in us, and He will work through us, using the same resources He had and more. As we humbly allow Him to work through us, we will do His works and even greater works than He did. Amen

Delasi K Anyah may be contacted through his website www.freedomdevotional.com or via email delaanyah@freedomdevotional.com