Running Free

Deep in every heart, a desire pulses to live out the passions of the soul.   Perhaps that is the draw most have to images of wild horses running free.  The power and supple grace of galloping horses speaks to the part of every soul that longs for freedom.  The reality, though, is wild horses live a dangerous freedom.  Harsh weather, stallion fights and natural predators steal their very lives.  The natural human soul running free from Christ faces similar deadly perils.  Alycia Burton of Auckland, New Zealand, once ran that way.

Raised to be independent and work for what she wanted, Alycia chased her equestrian dreams.  Saying school was not her thing, she left her home area at age 15 to get busy.  Chasing her dream brought great weariness and no deep fulfillment.  She had horses and a boyfriend but could not find what her soul truly sought.  Hard playing came just as naturally to the determined young woman. Alycia readily admits, “The local liquor shop knew me by name.”

Finally, in her early 20s, broke and exhausted she turned to the God she knew from childhood. “I told God I was done and asked what he was going to do with me.”  The conviction of the Spirit in that moment brings tears to her eyes as she speaks of the clear message to rid of her life of what does not please God.  Alycia responded with radical obedience, moving out of the home she shared with a boyfriend and seeking God with passion.  That obedience set her on the path to the full abundant life Christ came to give!  Watch her whole story here:

Her life today exudes a beauty with deeper integrity that delivers fulfillment to her and inspiration to others.  That same self-reliance and self-discipline Alycia once dedicated to doing her own thing, she now submits to the leading of the Holy Spirit.  The partnership she finds with the Lord evidences itself in the partnership she creates with her horses.  Alycia, now a professional trainer, is also a world-renowned free rider who rides bareback and bridle-less.    The intensity of her soul finds expression in rehabilitating and training horses to jump.  Alycia loves the challenge of horses others deem worthless.  She looks deep within the soul of the horse and speaks words of life—like she heard from God.  Her nurturing and discipline creates a bond that resonates with inspiration for all of us.