{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"The Salty Pastor","title":"What's Stealing Your Freedom","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":1225,"description":"Paul asks the Galatians a question that cuts right to the point: you were running a good race — who cut in on you? Something stopped you. An obstacle, an offense, a person, a setback. And instead of running through it, you stopped. Freedom isn't free because it requires you to keep running — not perfectly, not without fear, but without quitting. Whether it's a marriage that's hard, a sobriety streak that matters, a faith that's gone dry, or a season of parenting that's exhausted you — the instruction is the same: don't stop.\nFreedom also requires discernment, because people constantly try to take it. Spiritually, the most common version is someone arguing that you're not committed enough, devoted enough, or following the right doctrinal line. Strip all of that down and it's always the same thing — complicating what Paul keeps insisting is simple: faith expressing itself through love.\nBut the deepest thief of freedom isn't other people cutting in on you. It's what you tell yourself. C.S. Lewis made a distinction that matters enormously: there is all the difference in the world between forgiving and excusing. Excusing says there were circumstances, you couldn't help it, you weren't really to blame. Forgiving says — yes, that was wrong. All the way wrong. And I will never hold it against you. Real forgiveness from God is always available. But you have to actually ask for it — not manage it, not explain it, not minimize it. Ask for it.\nSupport the mission of the Salty Pastor ministry! Visit our donations page at https://pushpay.com/g/thesaltypastor to help us continue sharing truth with a world in need. Visit thesaltypastor.com to sign up for our weekly email, designed to coach, inspire, and encourage you to a mature faith.\nDiscussion Questions\n1. What has \"cut in on\" your race — stopped your forward momentum in faith, marriage, sobriety, or growth? Are you still stopped, or running again?\n2. C.S. Lewis distinguishes between forgiving and excusing. Have you been...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/KtmwLrrvo3_7vR2ufzDuSaLppKY_ofGpd-FivpXn_Kg/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS81MjYz/ZmExY2M3ZDRkNGFi/NThlNDBjNzBlNGI5/MDJjYy5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}