Christian Devotional: "If You Love Someone, Set Them Free"

This devotion reflects on how true love means freedom. God is the giver of freedom in a relationship. Experiencing such freedom, we allow love to change and transform while allowing the other to leave and/or come back to us. Only then is love true love.

Transcript

Welcome to the devotional day four.

If you love someone,

Set them free.

If you love someone,

Set them free.

If they come back,

They're yours.

If they don't,

They never were.

Quote from Richard Bach.

Meditation.

When we love someone,

We do not love that person the same all the time.

Sometimes we try,

But it doesn't work.

Love changes over time and sometimes love requires us to let the other person go and be free.

Free from expectations,

Free from certain patterns and certain roles.

If we allow those who we love to have that space and freedom to choose to come back or to leave and we allow ourselves the same freedom,

Then love does not become a prison or a way of holding another person hostage.

Love allows for change,

Even if that means to painfully let the other person go.

Sometimes the only way to preserve love is to set the other person free.

The Bible verse from 2nd Timothy 1 verse 7.

For God gave us a spirit not of fear,

But of power and love and of a sound mind.

I'm saying a prayer.

Gracious God,

Your love is a love that models freedom.

You do not force us to be in an intimate relationship with you.

You allow us times of going away from you,

Times of not wanting you in our lives,

Times of doubt and times of rebellion against you.

And at the end of the day,

This is why we can come back to you.

Your relationship with us transforms over the years.

Help us to allow our human relationships also to be transformed.

Help us to set one another free.

Amen.