1 Peter 5:7: “Give all your worries and cares to God, for
He cares about what happens to you.” (NLT)
With no allusion to the ubiquitous song from Disney’s
Frozen, I keep encountering the idea held in the title of the popular princess
anthem: “Let It Go.” The Christian band Tenth Avenue North also has a song with
the same title, but their lyrics sound like a letter from God encouraging us to
release everything to Him. Recently, within one week, at least three friends
shared with me how things changed in their lives once they “let go” of certain
situations. I don’t think any of them realized God was using them to reinforce
His message to me.
For me, letting go means releasing a problem, concern or
desire to God in submission to Him. In that moment, I am asking for His wisdom,
His clarity, His will. Perhaps that is one of God’s greatest desires is that we
trust so completely in His wisdom, goodness and grace that we relinquish
control and surrender our lives to Him. Philippians 4:6-7 promises this course
will bring unimaginable peace: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in
everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to
God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your
hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” I hope one day I can hold on to the
lesson of “letting go” so I can experience the peace God promises.
Reinhold Niebuhr shared his thoughts on the subject in
his famous “Serenity Prayer,” the first half of which many folks have memorized. Here’s the rest
of the prayer:
“Living one day at a time; enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; taking as He
did,
this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it;
trusting that He will make all things right if I
surrender to His Will;
that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely
happy
With Him forever in the next.
Amen.”