Summer of Freedom

Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. [5] One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. [6] When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?” [7] “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.” [8] Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.”

John 5:3,5-8 NIV

Like the paralyzed man in this scripture, many of us have felt stuck.

Whether it is a circumstance, an emotion, or a sin, it is frustrating and discouraging to get stuck, and it can be hard to know how to get out of it. Just as the man needed Jesus’ help to get unstuck, we can’t get unstuck alone.

We need help from both friends and God to move forward in our lives, and this starts with asking what Jesus asked – “Do you want to get well?” By answering this question, we can begin to make the following decisions:

• Tell the truth
• Stop resisting
• Make a change

For any of us, but especially for teenagers, simplicity is key. By making the simple choice to either tell the truth, stop resisting help, or make a change in our lives, we make steps toward getting unstuck and becoming free. Join Russ Ewell and friends as they talk about what decisions we can make to have a summer of freedom.