Barbara Carmack, along with her daughter Kimberly, invites you into a heartfelt exploration of spiritual life on Call to Freedom. Reflecting on the importance of being a light in the world, they discuss the transformative power of faith and the peace that comes with accepting Jesus as Savior. With passages from Isaiah 9 and personal stories of overcoming darkness, this episode serves as a reminder that we are never alone in our journey towards spiritual fulfillment and eternal joy.
SPEAKER 01 :
Welcome to Call to Freedom with Barbara Carmack. This is Jimmy Lakey, and I’m delighted that you are joining us for this half hour. You can reach Call to Freedom at Box 370367, Denver, Colorado, 80237, or by going to the website at www.freedomstreet.org. If you want to leave a message or order a Word Power Daily Reading Bible Guide or a Freedom Street Express newsletter, you can call us toll free at 1-877-917-7256 and leave your name and address, including your zip code. If you want to talk to Barbara right now, she is expecting your call. You may call that same toll-free number, 1-877-917-7256 to speak to her. And now, let’s join Barbara in the studio.
SPEAKER 02 :
Ah, what a wonderful time to be alive. I hope you’re praising God that you are alive today. Welcome to Call to Freedom. May God work in you what is pleasing to Him through Jesus Christ to whom be glory forever and ever and ever. Oh, amen. He is going to give us such a wonderful eternal life we can’t even begin to imagine. Just today I was seeing some beautiful photographs from Austria and and Bavaria in Germany. And I said, Oh, Lord, I’d love to see that. And this little voice inside of me, yes, I mean, it wasn’t vocal, it wasn’t verbal, but it was, you’re going to see it. And I said, oh, thank you, Lord. Thank you. I’m going to see it someday. Oh, this world, this earth, this global earth is going to be gorgeous someday, folks. And when you accept Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, you’re going to see all that he has planned for you. You are blessed to dispense for in him you live and move and have your being. And you can give online to Call to Freedom by going to freedomstreet.org. And if you donate in the month of December, you get a 2025 calendar. And it’s beautiful. It’s a motivational calendar. It has an adjective for every month. And you can just work on all those different characteristics that you’re working on. And I am working on them still. Amen. My life has not been complete. Hallelujah. He’s still working on the things. Oh, the hurrying. This morning he said, Barbara, there’s time. You can just take a few moments. You don’t have to hurry. You don’t have to run. And it’s been my life. So just taking a moment and saying, thank you, Father. Thank you for being in every moment of my day and encouraging me to stop and rest and take a moment. So if you go to freedomstreet.org, you can not only… give online but you can also listen to radio shows and if you want to listen to a radio program from there you can go down a couple three months i know our webmaster says you’ve got shows for from a year back and so we’re going to kind of trim those up but You may go back and listen to all those shows and the Friday shows of Darren. It’s just a wonderful thing. And as I said before, you’re going to get a 2025 motivational calendar if you give during the month of December. So you’ve got some days left. And today we’re going to… be talking about such a wonderful verse, a prophecy that came true. If that prophecy came true in the Old Testament, do you think that the prophecies about Jesus returning are not going to be true? Boy, do people have another thing coming. Praise the Lord. Well, I am talkative this afternoon, so I’m going to let my daughter, Kimberly, God bless you, Kimberly, come in and take over for this wonderful teaching.
SPEAKER 05 :
Hey, I miss you. I miss just being with you and seeing each other’s faces across that table there.
SPEAKER 02 :
I know. I know. It is really different, isn’t it? When you’re sitting alone and it’s blank. It is.
SPEAKER 05 :
Not being able to see you.
SPEAKER 02 :
I know. I know.
SPEAKER 05 :
And I just wanted to say that. But you know what? I’m going to say thank you real quick. Brett, if you’re listening, I just want to say thank you for the matching mugs. I’m holding mine right now. It’s full of warm tea. And this morning, Mom and I were talking, and she said, oh, yeah, my mug is right here. I’m just very grateful to have these matching mugs so that when you’re drinking coffee, Mom, and I’m drinking tea… And it’s really fun to just know that we’re connected. We’re still connected. We’re looking at the same thing and holding the same thing, holding it in our hearts, too, holding the word of God in our hearts. And I love that connection.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, it was so sweet of Brett. I mean, he had to go to work, and yet he came and knocked on the door, left not only those Duffy donuts. Oh, my goodness. Cinnamon rolls, I guess.
SPEAKER 01 :
They’re rolls. Yeah.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yes, but also those mugs for you and me. And I think we have a game tonight and one more left. And so tonight I’m going to be using my mug, my Bronco mug. It’s so cute. Thank you, Brett.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yes.
SPEAKER 02 :
Thank you so much. Yes.
SPEAKER 05 :
We were talking about Isaiah 9, 2-7, and it’s the season to be reminded that a child has been given to us. And I would like for you to start out reading that passage from Isaiah 9.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yes. Isaiah 9, verse 1. And this is in the message, folks. And if you don’t have a message translation, you need to go to ChristianBook.com and just order one. The message is such a beautiful description. It may not be literal translation, but boy, it’s so close. And it’s so beautiful. Here it is. But there will be no darkness for those who were in trouble. Earlier, he did bring the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali into disrepute. And I’ve got to say right here, sometimes God may disturb you and your habits because you have been in such a habit of doing something. He wants you to change. And so he’s going to bring you into disrepute for just a season to teach you some new things. That’s what he’s doing for me. So he did bring the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali into disrepute. But the time is coming when he’ll make that whole area glorious, the road along the sea and the country past the Jordan, international Galilee. Isn’t that beautiful?
SPEAKER 05 :
Yes.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yes.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yes. Keep going. Are we still in Isaiah 9? Yes. Verse 2. Just keep reading. Verse 2. Read the whole thing.
SPEAKER 02 :
Oh, the whole, okay. Verse two, the people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. For those who lived in the land of deep shadows, light, sunbursts of light. You repopulated the nation. You expanded its joy. Oh, they’re so glad in your presence. Festival joy, the joy of a great celebration, sharing rich gifts and warm greetings. And we can say with them, Nehemiah 8, 10, let’s eat the fat and drink the sweet and share with others for the joy of the Lord is our strength. Verse four of Isaiah nine, the abuse of oppressors and cruelty of tyrants, all their whips and cudgels. Now I had to look up the word cudgels. It’s a short, thick stick used as a weapon, as a club. Have you been beating yourself up? Do you want me to stop there? No, keep going. Here comes the best part. Okay, right in the middle of all this burning. Verse 6, for a child has been born for us. For us, folks. The gift of a son for us. He’ll take over the running of the world. His names will be Amazing Counselor, Strong God, Eternal Father, Prince of Wholeness. His ruling authority will grow and there’ll be no limits to the wholeness he brings. Excuse me. He’ll rule from the historic David throne over that promised kingdom. He’ll put that kingdom on a firm footing and keep it going with fair dealing and right living, beginning now and lasting always. The zeal of God of the angel armies will do all this.
SPEAKER 05 :
I love that in the message version. That is so beautiful. The way that it’s talking about a celebration, sunbursts of light, festival, joy. This is a time of celebration. It’s holy to the Lord. You had inserted Nehemiah 8.10 there. Eat the fat and drink the sweet and do not be sad. Don’t be grieved. This is a holy time of celebration to the Lord for what he has done. And then it just mentions right in here, it inserts love. The the cruelty of the oppressors and the tyrants that have beaten us up with whips and clubs. And that might just be our own generational curses and our own thoughts in our own head that are so cruel to us. And they’re gone. They’re done away with. We’ve been delivered from all of that. And it’s going to be. heaped up in huge heaps and burned so that they’ll never bother us again. The fire’s going to burn for days. Why? Because a child has been born for us. And what a gift this child is. What a gift. The son for us. He will take over the running of the world. He will take over the running of your mind. And I was just looking at some of these words. It starts out talking about those who live in a land of deep shadows and Those deep shadows, they can come in a lot of different forms. If you’re going through a transition in your life, you might have been shaken up unexpectedly and that can feel dark. And if you’ve been in the same old job with the same old people, the same old things for so many years, that can feel dark. If your relationships with your family keep ending up in the same old loops and you just keep going around and around the same old arguments, the same old mountains, that can feel dark. And maybe you’re struggling with an addiction. That can feel really dark too. So deep shadows can touch all of us in different ways. And addictions, I don’t know why, that’s standing out to me right now, they can flare up during this time of year. Addictions can really be a problem. And I think what feels darkest about an addiction is that you feel like you have been struggling with this thing for so long and you’re never going to beat it. That feels really dark. But the good news is you’re right. I know that’s not what you were expecting me to say. You’re right. You’re not going to be able to beat it on your own. And nor were you meant to. You were not meant to beat it on your own. The good news is that someone else with a capital S and a capital O, someone else beat has beat it for you and the whole point is to be in touch with him i really appreciated your program monday mom you played breath of heaven and you encouraged us to make time and give time to the one we were made for. The more we talk with him, the more we spend time with him and he reveals himself to us in that time, the more we are aware of his help and his victory in our lives. We can’t beat this stuff on our own. We need him. And that’s what it means that his strength is perfected in our weakness. We’re too weak to handle it in our own strength.
SPEAKER 02 :
We need him. Yes. Oh, this morning, Kimberly, it was a prime example. I had my day all figured out. This is what I’m going to do. Oh, God is so precious. And, you know, I go into the office. I’m going to print off all the name labels so I can just stick them on the calendars and take them to the post office and stand in line and get them sent. Well, I start getting into the programs and something’s happened. And so the publisher won’t talk to Excel, and I’m stuck. And I’m going, oh, Father, I had all this planned out. I was going to do this. And I said, okay, Father God, I guess I know who to call. So I called Chris. He’s precious. And I called his direct line. He’s given me his direct line, and he says hello. And I said, Chris, I’ve got just a little issue here. He went right into the computer, even though he was online with another person. He put them on hold and went right into the computer. And while he was fixing it, it took about 20 minutes. I got to clean my desk, which I haven’t cleaned for five years. And I was just throwing stuff in the trash and throwing up. And I’m saying, wow, Lord, you just picked this time for just some cleaning up. And so when he got back online, we talked and talked. And I thanked him for having some time last week for you and him and me to meet for lunch and whatever. We just had such a good conversation. That’s what God wanted. He didn’t want me just printing off these mailing things and getting it to the post office. He wanted some communication and some wonderful fellowship. Yes. Yes. Yes.
SPEAKER 05 :
So it worked out. Yes, it did work out. And when we go back into our routines like that, that’s what can start feeling dark. And we don’t even know it. We don’t even know that we’re just walking in darkness. Right. But we keep putting one foot in front of the other, doing the same old thing, and that’s when we need light. And Isaiah 9, is that verse 5? The light, sunbursts of light that God brings to us. It says here, you, God, repopulated the nation. You expanded its joy. That is so wonderful to hear that. We can be so glad in His presence and have this kind of a festivity, festival, joy, celebration, great celebration, and share, share rich gifts and warm greetings with one another because of this light, this light. Now, remember when Jesus told us that we are the light of the world? That’s in Matthew 5, 14 and 16. He says, you are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lamp stand. And it gives light to all who are in the household. So we are the light of the world. It also says in John 8, 12, that’s where it’s recorded that Jesus is the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. So this is what we want to remember. Jesus is the first light of the world. When we are following in his ways, in his footsteps, when we are practicing the fruits of the spirit, we are then the light of the world also.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yes.
SPEAKER 05 :
And it breaks my heart when I see those who have lost hope, who have lost the light in their lives, because we’ve all been created to be light in this world. And if we get stuck or lost in such a way that we are no longer a light in to others, that is really sad. We need to find our way back to the light, back to relationship with the one who is the first light. And being in relationship with the light brings you back to shining your light as well. Romans 8 reminds us that nothing can separate us from the love of God. You know, that could read, nothing can separate us from the light of God. Yeah. So if you’re feeling separated from that light, it’s not because he walked away from you because nothing can separate us from his light and his love. He stays with us. So if you’re not seeing the light, if you’re not feeling the love. more than likely you were the one that walked away. And if that’s true, then find that place where you felt like you had to leave him. Find that place in your life and move back toward him today because we want to stay in relationship with the light of life.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yes. Oh, in John one for Kimberly, it says of Jesus in him was life and the life was the light of men. You can’t have light without Jesus. You cannot know light. And then it says, and the light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overpower that light. Who is Jesus Christ? Right.
SPEAKER 05 :
the light of the world. Oh, that’s right. That’s good. Yes. Yes. So if you’re not in relationship with the light of life, consider reading or listening to the Bible. or make it a habit to listen to praise and worship music or hymns. There are many sources that sing the word of God. And that’s one thing that I actually appreciate about the Catholic church. They love to make Bible verses and word for word verses available in songs. And I know there are other churches that do it too, but I just think it’s wonderful that the Catholics still practice that. They like to put those Bible verses in song. And if we go back to Isaiah 9, and we’re talking about the oppressors and the cruelty of their whips, cudgels, clubs, and curses, you know, so many of those are our own thoughts that we get stuck in. Or habits and ways of our generations. We just do it a certain way and we don’t even realize that it’s doing damage. And it goes on to say that the boots of all those invading troops along with their shirts, those boots and shirts are going to be piled up in a heap and burned. I was thinking, okay, what’s so important about boots? You know, there’s an old song, these boots were made for walking and they’re going to walk all over you. If you have ever felt trampled in this life, or if you’ve been given the boot, you know, that saying, they gave him the boot, you’ve been kicked around, you’ve been kicked out or made to feel like you’re less than. Well, those boots are going to burn, along with the shirts. Or you could think of shirts as somebody’s money and resources. You’ve heard the saying, he lost his shirt in that deal. Oh, that’s good. So that’s one way of looking at resources or power and substance. And if the enemy has taken that shirt, you’ve lost your shirt in the deal. We’re going to watch those shirts and those boots burn because a child has been born to us. There’s a beautiful song by Bebe and Cece Winans called For Unto Us a Child is Born. And I would like to hear that song right now.
SPEAKER 03 :
Unto us a child is born Unto us a son is given Unto us a child is born Unto us a son is given Unto us a son is given. For unto us a child is born. this one to judge with justice and love. Almighty God, everlasting love. Right this one I know It shall be mine to own Oh Jesus, for unto us a child is born You’re a transgression Yes, yes, yes.
SPEAKER 05 :
That is such a beautiful song.
SPEAKER 02 :
Oh, it is. And as the message says, amazing counselor, strong God, eternal father, prince of wholeness or peace. Kimberly, if our listeners need someone to counsel or get advice from, they need a strong God surrounding them and wrapping them around with love. It’s Jesus. It’s Jesus. All they have to do is reach out to him.
SPEAKER 05 :
That’s right. You had pulled up a scripture from Revelation. You might still have that in front of you. The kingdoms of this world.
SPEAKER 02 :
I’ll let you read it. The kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdom, capital K, of our God and of his Christ. And he shall reign forever and ever. Revelation 11, 15. Yes. Yes.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yes. The kingdoms of this world, they can beat us up. They can walk all over us. Those boots that just keep kicking us to the side, kicking us to the curb and losing our shirts because we just haven’t had any kind of an upper hand in any way. But here is one, a child who has been born to us and his kingdom, the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ. This is what’s taking over. It’s a new administration. It’s a new authority that is taking over on the inside of every one of us. We’re all so weary and tired of the deep shadows. We’re tired of the darkness and trying to find our way in the dark. We’re ready for the light. the light has been given to us and all of those old kingdom ways with the boots that have been kicking us the shirts that have been stained with innocent blood that’s going to be gathered up in a heap burned with fire burned and burned and burned it might take a few days for it all to burn away and it’s being burned Because of our Lord, because of Jesus. And we are so blessed to be called his own. We are so blessed to be pulled into that kingdom of light. And I’m just encouraging each one of you to live in that light. Go back and find where you may have walked away from it and let that light be restored in your life because we miss you. If your light has grown dim, know that you are missed in this world. Your light is missed and we really want you back. So come back to us. Come back with the light and come back and live in that love and in that peace.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yes. We won’t have you here this next Wednesday because it’s Christmas. So Kimberly, we all wish you a Merry Christmas. We love you dearly and we thank you for all your wonderful anointed teaching. God bless you.
SPEAKER 05 :
Thank you. Take joy.
SPEAKER 01 :
Thank you for listening to Call to Freedom with Barbara Carmack. You may get in touch with Barbara at Call to Freedom, Box 370-367, Denver, Colorado, 80237. Or you may leave your message at 1-877-917-7256. Call to Freedom is a listener-supported radio ministry. Barbara and her power partners invite you to come on board with us and become a network of hands holding up Call to Freedom ministry. Our partners support Call to Freedom with prayer and monthly financial support. You will be blessed supernaturally. We invite you to visit Call to Freedom’s website, www.freedomstreet.org, where you can hear Barbara’s daily radio broadcast 24 hours a day or order materials. You may share your praise reports and heart cries by mailing them to Call to Freedom, Box 3703675. denver colorado 80237 or you may email us at barbara carmack at freedom street dot org until next time remember jesus loves you barbara loves you and take joy