What Has a Hold on You?
A Sixteen-Lesson Journey Into Freedom — Identifying What Controls You and Reclaiming the Life Christ Purchased
Welcome. Every one of us has something that has a hold — a fear, a habit, a wound, a person, a need for approval, a memory that won't let go. We didn't ask for it, but it's there, and we know it. This Bible study walks you through sixteen areas where the enemy loves to sink his hooks — and it shows you, from Scripture, how to get free and stay free. Start with Lesson One and be honest. The truth really does set you free.
The Journey
Sixteen Lessons, One Freedom
Each lesson is designed to be read in one sitting. Be honest with yourself. Let the Word uncover what's been holding you — and let the truth set you free.
Why Do You Do What You Don't Want to Do?
Paul's Honest Confession in Romans 7 and the First Step to Freedom — Admitting the Thing Has a Hold on You
Fear — the Thing That Whispers in the Dark
2 Timothy 1:7 — God Did Not Give You a Spirit of Fear. So Where Did It Come From, and How Do You Get Free?
The Approval of People
Living for Applause You Were Never Meant to Need — Galatians 1:10 and the Idolatry of Being Liked
The Past — When Yesterday Won't Let Go
Philippians 3:13-14 — How to Forget What Is Behind When It Keeps Reaching Forward
Bitterness and Unforgiveness
Hebrews 12:15 — the Root of Bitterness That Defiles Many. What Unforgiveness Is Doing to You, Not Just to the Person Who Hurt You
Shame — the Voice That Says You Are the Problem
Genesis 3 — Why Adam and Eve Hid, and Why Shame Has Been Making People Hide Ever Since
Comparison and Envy
2 Corinthians 10:12 — Measuring Yourself by Someone Else's Ruler and Why It Always Breaks You
The Need to Control
Proverbs 16:9 — You Can Plan Your Steps, But You Cannot Determine the Outcome. Letting Go of the Reins.
Habits and Addictions — the Thing You Swore You'd Stop
1 Corinthians 6:12 — 'I Will Not Be Mastered by Anything' — and What It Takes to Actually Walk That Out
Your Image — What You Need People to Think
Matthew 23:27 — Whitewashed Tombs and the Exhaustion of Keeping Up Appearances
Worry — Borrowing Tomorrow's Trouble
Matthew 6:25-34 — Why Jesus Said 'Do Not Worry' and the Freedom on the Other Side of Trust
Money and Possessions
1 Timothy 6:10 — the Love of Money Is a Root of All Kinds of Evil. Not Money Itself — the Hold It Has.
Relationships — When Love Has Become a Cage
1 Corinthians 13 — Love Does Not Control, Does Not Manipulate, Does Not Demand Its Own Way. Relearning Love.
Busyness — the Addiction Nobody Calls Addiction
Luke 10:38-42 — Martha Was Doing Good Things, but She Was Missing the One Thing. What Busyness Is Costing You.
The Lies You Believe About Yourself
John 8:32 — 'You Shall Know the Truth, and the Truth Shall Make You Free.' What Lies Are Holding You Captive?
Walking Free — and Staying Free
Galatians 5:1 — 'It Is for Freedom That Christ Has Set Us Free.' How to Walk in the Freedom You've Been Given and Not Return to the Chains.
After You Finish
When you've completed all sixteen lessons, take time to reflect on what came loose. Real freedom changes how you live. Walk in what you've been given — and don't let anything take hold of you again.