Self-Constructed Prisons

”The Lord is my light and my salvation.

Who is there to fear?

The Lord is my life's fortress.

Who is there to be afraid of?” (Psalm 27:1, God’s Word)

Some time ago there was an account in our newspaper about a man, who while traveling out west during a snowstorm and made a wrong turn unto a side road. After traveling a relatively short distance his car became mired in the snow and he felt stranded. According to a diary that he had kept while trapped inside his vehicle, he prayed often and fervently for his rescue; but no one came and he died while waiting for assistance. Ironically, less than ¼ mile from where he was located the highway had been plowed and help was readily available!!

I read and reread this account a number of times and I reflected on how we too make prisons for ourselves. We too at times feel stranded! We allow various fears to cause us distress, rob us of joy, isolate us from others and often paralyze us from acting to even engage the problem. To manage these fears we chose to hide behind walls – prisons of our own making!

People who profess loneliness but yet do not attempt to reach out for comradeship frequently exemplify this self-imposed isolation. Instead they stay confined in their self-constructed prisons. Meanwhile all types of opportunities to meet new people through social or church groups or even establishing contact with others in their neighborhood are available. Maybe even acquiring of pet would act as some solace. Anything would be preferable to locking oneself away celebrating pity parties while numerous forms of release from their loneliness are readily available.

Many of us are familiar with the inspirational story of Helen Keller, who was blind and deaf from birth. No miracle occurred to cure her deafness and blindness and yet she was set free as she found the key to understanding and communication and it opened the prison gates for her. She went on to be one of the most influential and inspirational women of the 20^th century, helping countess visually and hearing impaired folks, and opening doors to better understand them as individuals and recognizing how much they could contribute to our society.

So not only was Helen Keller set free from her prison, she helped many others to free themselves, and she gave the world a way to break from a prejudice toward those who shared her physical limitations. Of course, not everyone chooses to be set free. Some people inflict imprisonment on themselves and let their real or imagined limitations become their focus, like focusing on prison bars rather than the free world beyond.

We are faced each day with opportunities to set ourselves free from anything that might be holding us back. We may recall that the Apostle Paul was imprisoned numerous times, but that was only physical incarceration, he was never in prison in his spirit or his mind (Philippians 1:12-14). Is there a lesson here for us? Do we join with the psalm writer in saying, “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?” He looked to God as his light and salvation. If we follow this way – in small steps, as we feel empowered – we too will experience His presence and our self-constructed prison gates will open!