Since childhood, I’ve always felt a burden for others. As a result, I’d often find myself carrying the weight of the others on my shoulders. It was a really hard habit to break. I’d reached a point of decision. Would I continue to sacrifice my own well-being or let go? At the time, I was married and starting a family. Therefore, my focus had to shift from others to what really mattered. I could no longer afford to be responsible for others. Now, I needed to direct my energy toward taking care of my children. The truth is we all belong to God. If we aren’t careful, we can become “God” in the lives of our loved ones by enabling them. We can even interfere with what God is trying to do in their lives. We can’t always come to their rescue because we are not superheroes. It is simply not our job. God doesn’t need our help; He is God all by Himself. Yet, we often forget this and step out of our places.
The serenity prayer states, “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. Courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference”. Learning to accept that we can’t change things isn’t always easy. Neither is it easy to change what we can or even know what we can and cannot change. However, we have to learn to do just that.
Proverbs 3:5-6 states, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and He shall direct thy paths”.
We have to get to a place of complete trust in God void of our own understanding and strength. This has proven to be true in my life especially when it comes to parenting. We have to learn to give our loved ones back to God. God gave them to us and they ultimately belong to Him. He has a plan for their lives and we have rest in the fact that He knows what is best for them. The same applies to our marriages, friendships, jobs, and every other of our lives. He even has a plan for the difficult times in our lives. God reminds us of this in Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.”
Nevertheless, we have to resolve to be alright with things not turning out the way we expected. Some times our ways are not what God wants for us. His will may involve us taking a different route, ending a relationship, or even loss. Regardless of our own personal feelings, we have to follow His lead and release it to Him.
Let’s self-reflect for a moment. Is there anything in your life that you need to release to God? What is stopping you from doing so?
I’ve learned that there is freedom in letting go. In doing so, we relinquish the power to God over our relationships and circumstances. We give Him the green light to be God on our behalf. It also relieves us of worrying about how things will turn out because we know He is in control and calling all the shots.
Ultimately, letting go means being fully assured of Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.”
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