“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free ...
Jesus opened his ministry with these words. As I begin to get ready to go to Raymond Correctional Center for my third ministry there, I ask for prayer for these efforts. I go there with heavy heart, having sinned greatly yesterday, losing my temper for the first time in forever, but losing it all the same. For no real, good reason, I lost it. Lost IT. Acted a fool. Acted a simpleton. Acted, well, me.
What did Jesus mean with these words from Isaiah, by the way? He was certainly anointed. He certainly talked about the poor often, and surely we will be met with the living poor in prison. He certainly gave sight to the blind, physically and metaphorically. He certainly set the oppressed free, those who had ears to hear. But what prisoners did he give freedom to?
Fact is we are all prisoners, friends. Prisoners to our desires, our wants, even our needs. Prisoners to our angers and our wants. Prisoners to those things that keep us from being, well, like Jesus. Every single time I think I'm closer, I'm farther. I fell apart this week for reasons that have no logical bearing on my life. I fell apart because I felt I was so very much closer to being Jesus. In other words, every time I'm close, I drop in a big hole of sin. If that isn't a prisoner, I don't know what is.
This week, the remainder of the long week, let us all pray that we can be more like Jesus. That we can set and be set free. That we can help, as well as being helped. That we can pray for, as well as being prayed for.
I've been forgiven. But can I forgive, myself?
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