Called to Be Free: What You Do With Your Freedom Matters

What if freedom is not about doing whatever you want—but becoming who God created you to be?

In this episode of the Intentional Grounding Godcast – Letters to Isaiah, Coach Dombrowski dives into Galatians 5:13 and unpacks the difference between freedom for yourself and freedom for purpose. This episode challenges the lie that freedom means selfishness and reveals that true liberty is found when we use our lives to love, serve, and lead others.

If you have ever felt stuck even after getting what you wanted, this episode will help you understand why. You may have gotten free—but now God is asking what you are going to do with that freedom.

Transcript

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What if the biggest thing holding you back right now isn't your struggle? What if it's your freedom? Because some of us have been praying for freedom for so long that we never stopped to ask what we would do with it once we got it. You wanted freedom from that relationship. You wanted freedom from that addiction. You wanted freedom from that toxic environment. You wanted freedom from the opinions of everybody else. And now maybe you've got a little more space. Maybe a little bit more breathing room, a little more freedom. But now what? Because freedom without direction can become destruction. Freedom without purpose can become selfishness. Freedom without God can become another prison with better lighting. So today we're gonna go somewhere different. Not into a story of war, not into prophecy, not into one of the verses everybody expects. We're gonna go into a verse that hits harder the older you get. One verse that explains why some people get set free and still stay stuck. One verse that explains why some people finally get what they wanted and somehow still ended up empty. And it comes from the book of Galatians, chapter 5, verse 13. Welcome to the Intentional Grounding Godcast Letters to Isaiah. I'm your faith strategist today, Coach Dombrowski. Galatians 5, 13, and it says, Ye have been called unto liberty. Only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. So let me set the stage here for you. The Apostle Paul is writing to a group of people who are just straight up confused. I mean, they've been set free by Jesus. They were starting to think that freedom meant that they could do whatever they wanted. And other people thought the opposite. They thought freedom meant going back under a thousand rules. Paul steps in and says, No, you were called to freedom, but freedom is not permission to become selfish. Freedom is an opportunity to become useful. And that changes everything. Because most of the world defines freedom like this. I can do whatever I want. But God defines freedom like this. I'm finally free to become who He created me to be. That's a big difference between the two, right? I mean, freedom fighting for your life every day. Two versions of that. Right? Version one, freedom from your for yourself. Like this is the kind of freedom that says, I don't owe anybody anything. I can do whatever makes me happy. Nobody can tell me what to do. I deserve this. And at first, it sounds empowering. But if we're honest, some of the worst decisions of our lives came when we followed every feeling and every impulse because we thought freedom meant nobody could stop us. That's how you blow a relationship, how you walk away from God, hurt the people that love them, right? Chase things that looked good and ended up empty. Because freedom used for the flesh always promises more than it delivers. It says, man, this is going to make you feel alive. And eventually it leaves you feeling numb. Now, the second version of this, freedom for purpose. Now, this is the freedom that Paul is talking about. The kind that says, I am free from the opinions of other people. I am free from who I used to be. I'm free from guilt. I'm free from shame. I'm free from having to prove myself. And because of that, I can finally love people. I can finally serve. I can finally stop making everything about me. That's the real freedom. Because when you're still controlled by your ego and your anger and insecurity, your image, the cravings or the fear, you're not free. You're just obeying a different master, right? Maybe you finally got the job. Maybe you finally got out of a relationship, or maybe you finally got some money, or you finally got the freedom that you prayed for. Now the question becomes: what are you doing with it? Because if all you do with your freedom is protect yourself or isolate yourself or entertain yourself and build your own little world, eventually that freedom becomes lonely. But if you use your freedom to encourage somebody else or to mentor somebody or to help somebody, to pray for somebody, even just to show up for somebody, but then your freedom starts producing fruit. You stop surviving, you start multiplying. And maybe there's somebody listening right now who has spent years saying, well, when I finally get free, then I'll be happy. Right? But you got free, and well, you're still not happy. Because happiness was never going to come from freedom itself. It was going to come from what you chose to do with it. You can have all the freedom in the world and still be miserable if you use it only on yourself. That is why some people have everything and still feel empty inside. And that's why some people have very little, but their lives overflow with peace. Right? Because purpose fills with pleasure, never could. So stop asking, what am I free to do? Start asking, what am I free for? You're not just free to chase your own comfort. You're free to become the person you were, you know, too wounded, too afraid, or too distracted to become before. You're free to forgive. You're free to lead. You are free to heal. You're free to trust God again. And you're free to stop pretending. And maybe for the first time in a long time, you're free to love without being able to, or even having to keep score. But if you quit here, you might spend the rest of your life thinking that freedom means living with no limits. And the truth is this the most powerful people aren't the ones who can do whatever they want. They're the ones who have the ability to do anything and still choose what is right. That's maturity. That's wisdom. That's the spiritual growth. Galatians 5.13 is not just a verse about behavior, it's a verse about legacy.

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Right?

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Because the way you use your freedom is going to shape the people around you. If you use your freedom selfishly, the people around you are going to carry the weight of your choices. That stinks. But if you use your freedom to serve and encourage or to love, the people around you will become stronger because of your life. I mean, you can become the kind of person who walks into a room and makes people feel seen. You can be the kind of person who breaks cycles in the family. You can become the person who uses freedom to help somebody else find theirs. Man, that is a life that matters. And to my grandson Isaiah, by the time you hear this, there are going to be a lot of people telling you that freedom means, you know what, do whatever you want, pal. They're going to tell you that if it feels good, chase it. If it makes you happy, keep it. If it's hard, leave it. But I'm telling you, man, that that kind of freedom is small. Real freedom is bigger than that. Real freedom is being able to walk away from what hurt you. It's being able to choose what is right when nobody's watching, being able to use your life to help somebody else. And I hope you grow up knowing that you do not have to be controlled by the crowd or by your emotions or by your mistakes. You belong to God. And because of that, you're free. Not free to become less, but free to become more. Man, I love you. So this message today might have not just been for my grandson Isaiah. Maybe it was for you too. Maybe God's been trying to show you that the thing you've been calling freedom is what's keeping you stuck. So today we learn that freedom is not the ability to do whatever you want. It's the ability to become who God created you to be. If you use your freedom only for yourself, it's going to leave you empty. And if you use your freedom to love and serve, it just might create a legacy. So today or this week, ask yourself one question when you wake up. What am I free for today? And then live like your answer matters. Maybe that means calling somebody, I don't know. Means forgiving somebody. Maybe that means finally stepping into the purpose you've been avoiding. But listen, do not waste your freedom. Until next time, Coach Dombrowski out. I'll be praying for you.