This came from part of a discussion in one of the on-line fellowship groups I visit. It has lead me to think about my own journey to freedom outside of organized religion. What do you all think about this:

It is fairly easy to get out of the religious system (walk or RUN out, or, as some have encountered, be excommunicated), but it is much more difficult to get the system out of us. When I think I am finally free, I catch myself feeling, thinking, reacting or doing according to the religious systems way. (Am I the only one who is still doing this?)

It reminds me of the period Mo and his peeps spent between Egypt and Canaan. The children were out of Egypt, but God was working on getting Egypt out of the children and teaching them all that being in the kingdom means.

In Joshua 5:7-9 a similar thing, "And the Lord said to Joshua. This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you. So the name of the place is called Gilgal [rolling] to this day".

In this verse Joshua is told by God to circumcise all the males in the camp before they could go into the Promised Land. The cutting away of the reproach (the shame) of the world from them.

We know that Egypt refers to a type of the world, a worldview, a way of thinking and believing, a religious system. God had to cut this off of them. He had to cut it off of me. A cutting away of the old way of thinking and believing.

God rolled away our reproach. Thank God, in verse 8b it says, they remained in their places in the camp until they were healed.

Have we endured the “cutting away” and staying in the camp until we are healed. Does God have a 'spiritual recovery process' that is on-going?

Still chewing.