In the quietness of my spirit I have whispered, “Lord, I have to learn to hold things loosely.”
We all have a fair share of what we hold tightly in this life. Either it is a relationship, material possession, career, money, power, dreams and aspirations, influence, or no matter what that is, we know that as a Christian, holding things tightly brings pain and hurt when that unexpected moment, God takes it away from us.
As I looked back many years after, I have realized that God has taken many of the things that I held tightly in life. It was not only one but many. Relationship, dreams, career, even my ideal concepts with many things. In His wisdom, He showed it to me little by little until such time that I had the courage to let go and move on. It was a painful process that I thought I could not make it alive. Yet, God’s grace and mercy sustained me. The defeat and hopelessness that I once felt is replaced with freedom – freedom from being enslaved to such things without its eternal value. I am not saying that those enticement of the world is wrong – what I want to say is that those things are not necessary bad if we learn to hold them loosely, so when the Lord ask us to let go, we can easily loose our grip on it.
The paradox of life found in Matthew 16:25 that says, “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it, and whosoever will lose his life for My sake shall find it” encapsulates the idea of holding things lightly. I am sure that for many of us who have been a Christian for decades know that the more we chase the things that God does not approve, the more we don’t get it. Instead, we end up being hurt and devastated. I used to chase a role (promotion) at work so desperately that God never gave it to me no matter how I cried to Him. Then, I understood the verse that says, “For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, Nor from the south. But God is the judge: He putteth down one, and setteth up another,” Psalm 75:6-7. It is because of the Lord that we will have and get those things. We do not have to run after them, giving all our best to the world and less for the Lord. The lives of Esther and Mordecai were the best testimonies of God’s exaltation with those who revere and obey Him.
When God took those that I held tightly, I have learned to keep what I have with the right perspective. That anytime, He can take them away – money, possession, influence, and even my life. I have learned that every day that I wake up; it is because the Lord gives grace. Tomorrow is not a guarantee that I will still be alive. And, I appreciate how God after all those mistakes and stubbornness, lovingly blessed me with so many blessings that I never would have thought could be given to me. He corrected my shallow perspective and started to align it with His eternal perspective. It is a foolish thing to stay in the present thinking that tomorrow will be the same. The rich fool said in his heart, “I will build greater barns.” But God took his life from that very moment (Luke 12:13-21).
Life is short – we have seen that during pandemic. Probably, we knew friends and loved ones who left this earth and we were caught off guard. Having the right perspective of the life that God desires us to live while being pilgrims will give us the proper mindset. And having that proper mindset will give us the direction and right goals in light with that. I once read the statement “Don’t get so caught up in the things of this world, in the affairs of this life, that you lose sight of eternity.” I could not agree more. The time when we are caught up in the things of the world, we lose sight of eternity. We might enjoy it for a season, but it will not last. And, that’s a guarantee if we are children of God.
Loosen our grip on the things that we have, so when God ask us to let go, we will not argue with Him. We won’t feel frustrated and disheartened. We can give to Him willingly. Remember the truth- God will never take away anything that is for our own good. He sees the future, while we only see yesterday and today. Those that He takes don’t help us in light of having an eternal mindset.
What are you holding tightly that God wants you to hold loosely in this life?
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