![\"\"](\"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/Old-County-Jail.jpg\" "\\"Old")
<\/a>The inn keeper sold some souvenirs: a key ring with \u201cJailer\u2019s Inn\u201d inscribed on it and t-shirts with hands wrapped around cell bars that read, \u201cI spent my time in the old county jail.\u201d I had to have these items, so I purchased them on our way out. As we left, the \u201cjailer\/inn keeper\u201d quipped, \u201cIf you come to stay with us again, you\u2019ll be a repeat offender.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
I returned to Colorado with my reminder key ring and t-shirt in hand. The key was added to my key ring with my mail box, car, and house keys. But the t-shirt was another story.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I realized that I couldn\u2019t wear it anywhere. I was on staff at a church, so it wasn\u2019t appropriate work apparel. I am known in the community, so I thought it might not be a great witness to those I came in contact with to wear it around town. So with no other alternative, the t-shirt hung in my closet, hidden from the world.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Several months later, I realized that this t-shirt had a greater message for me. So I pulled it out and it is now hanging in my closet where I can see it every day.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
This t-shirt reminds me that I was once held in bondage by my sinful nature. I had been confined within the four small walls of that prison cell where God could not use me. And I knew that I didn\u2019t have to be held in that bondage any longer. I could break free. Yes, a prison escape! Free to live a life of freedom without condemnation.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Galatians 5:1 (NIV) says, \u201cIt is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.\u201d \u00a0<\/em>Without the chains and prison bars, I am no longer burdened. What a weight is lifted when we can walk away from that prison cell.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n We also have the promise from Jesus in John 8:34-36 (NIV). \u201cI tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n How thankful I am for Jesus, the Son and what He has done in my life. The gift of freedom is more precious than ever each time I remember the sacrifice of my Savior. We no longer need to be slaves to sin. He has set us free.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Combined with the key, the t-shirt has a greater message. The key can unlock the prison doors. The prison doors of my sinful nature can be thrown open because Jesus has given me the key to do so. I no longer have to live in that prison cell. I can be free!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Oh, I occasionally go back to the jailhouse of bondage, and in despair ask God for forgiveness. And when I see my key and my t-shirt, I know the life I\u2019m intended to live. I don\u2019t like hearing the words of the jailer, \u201cYou are a repeat offender.\u201d With Jesus, I can live, not as a captive, but as a free woman living life abundantly.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Grace and peace be yours in abundance,<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Donna<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For my Mom\u2019s 70th birthday, my sister and I took her to Bardstown, Kentucky to see the Stephen Foster musical, \u201cMy Old Kentucky Home.\u201d We stayed in a bed and breakfast that had been the county jail for many decades. It was a whimsical evening and one we will never forget. The inn keeper […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_s2mail":"yes","_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22,16,17,19],"tags":[226,221,222,225,223,224],"class_list":["post-989","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-believing-god","category-following-god","category-obeying-god","category-thanking-god","tag-abundant-life","tag-bondage-of-sin","tag-breaking-free","tag-freedom-in-christ","tag-galatians-51","tag-john-834-36"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/989","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=989"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/989\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":992,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/989\/revisions\/992"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=989"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=989"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=989"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}