Let Go

The month of September was full of many new things: new foods, new places, new students, new friends, and new lessons. My heavenly Father has been at work in my life, chiseling away at my sometimes reluctant sculpture. He has taught me to strive after Him with urgency; pushing forward to accomplish His glorious assignments. He has taught me to love my neighbor—those around me both good friends and unnamed strangers. But the lesson my heavenly Father revealed to me this past week was the lesson of letting go.

I’ve always been one to enjoy the comforts of life. I envisioned spending my years in a cozy suburban house, surrounded by the convenience and ease of modern American life. I desired comfort; was that so bad?

Maybe not. But as I mentioned in my previous blogpost, life is short, and because of this fact, I need to ensure that I am fulfilling the work of my Father with initiative and determination. If I were to pursue a life of comfort, I would never obtain it. Sure, I may purchase a luxurious house and all the toys that go with it, but as a Christian, I have a desire to share my faith with the lost. This so-called “comfort” would perhaps offer relaxation at times, but it would be overcome by a degree of guilt caused by avoiding God’s plan for my life.

Now I’m not saying that it’s wrong to live in a comfortable home. Far from it. What I am saying is it’s wrong to run from God and His plan to the false comfort and security of current Western life. I know I can never be comfortable living outside of His design.

God imparted to all humans the desire to achieve great success in life. But it is impossible to do this (by God’s standards) without first letting go of preconceived passions and goals. I have many objectives I would love to reach in my lifetime but if they are not in God’s plan then I will gratefully put them aside knowing they would only distract me from what is truly important.

Proverbs 30:7-9 says “Two things have I required of thee; deny me them not before I die: Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the Lord? Or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.” (KJV)

In a recent video regarding these verses, Francis Chan challenged the audience to pray for “neither poverty nor riches.” As I mentioned, I’ve always desired a comfortable life and with that comes security in money. I am letting go of my money and my future and putting in the hands of my Father because I know He will attend to it much better than I ever would.

What are you holding on to? Do you have desires, goals or aspirations that you know are not within God’s best plan for your life? Let go. It’s not worth holding on to. I am still learning to let go and to daily surrender my life to Him but I have found great peace in knowing my Father holds my life in His loving hands. Why should I restrict myself from His plan of perfection when I can fulfill it with His guidance?

“…If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?” (Luke 9:23-25 KJV)