Let Go and Let God

Have you ever heard the phrase, “let go and let God?” I used to hate it. “What does that even mean?” I’d ask myself. It took a while before I understood. Here’s the thing. So much of what happens in our life is out of our control. There are so many moving parts to this journey we’re on and often times there is a domino effect to each decision or change of plans. We’ll talk about the butterfly effect someday, but this is a different conversation. This is about the idea of control. The idea that you must control all things in your life for it to turn out the way you imagine. Here’s a secret... You cannot control everything. Often times, when we begin to feel out of control, we start to feel the NEED to micromanage or control EVERYTHING within our power. Ever catch yourself trying to make your spouse change clothes for no particular reason or all of a sudden being annoyed by your child’s independence? Take a step back and make sure that the decisions your family members are making are really “that bad” before you start preaching how things should be done. When you are able to give up that need for control, things are able to fall into place, exactly as they’re meant to. A perfect example of this is a couple trying to get pregnant. They track her cycle, eat the right foods and drink the right drinks. They do EVERYTHING right and still don’t conceive. When they finally give up the need for control and decide to adopt a baby, or get a puppy, or give up trying to get pregnant... BOOM, positive pregnancy test.  
 

I saw a quote once that says something like, “when you ask God for patience, he gives you long lines at the grocery store.” I’m not sure about you, but if I was in control, that’s not how I’d like to learn patience. In fact, I'm not sure I’d like to learn it at all... I’d just want to all of a sudden be patient. That’s not how it works though. We must learn, grow and evolve on this journey. For most of us, learning to give up control is one of those hard lessons to grasp. Usually, because we’re holding on too tight to something else. See when you have your grip so tight on the outcome or your idea of how something should happen, you have no room left for the tools you need to make it happen. Let’s say you’re in a financial bind. So, you hold tightly to the $10 bill you have. If someone came up to you and asked for you to open your hand, you’d say no, for fear of that $10 blowing away. What we fail to realize is that that person is asking you to open your hand in order to place $100 in it. We hold so tight to what we think to be true that we are unable to receive new, productive, insight or tools in our life.  

Have you ever watched a toddler try to put their coat on and struggle? Because of her fierce independence, you’re forced to watch her struggle, but you know that the coat will be upside when she’s finished. And she’ll get upset, but because she is stubborn she will do it by herself again. And again, the coat is upside down. When she finally agrees to let you help, it is an easy fix. She can still do it by herself, and the goal of putting her coat on is still obtained. The problem here wasn’t that she couldn’t do it. It wasn’t that she was trying to do something that wasn’t meant for her. Her problem was her need for controlling the outcome. She was sure that what she was doing was right, it was the only way to get her coat on, but she was not successful. When she gave up that control and heard the help you were offering, she was able to reach her goal! It is so easy to see this from the outside looking in. To see the times when people struggle because their need for control and/or independence gets in the way of success. I know if you reflect on a few things in your life you’ll see a few times when you were struggling with your coat too. 

I challenge you, when you feel out of control, to let go. There’s a reason things are changing faster than you can understand or your current methods are not proving successful. Take a breath, take a step back and wait for guidance. There’s a bigger plan in play here, something more to learn. Be open to what you need to make it all make sense. Be open to the challenges and whatever blessings will come because of it. Remember that God is able to handle it all. You just need to take a step back and let Him. Stop holding so tight to what you want, and open your hands to receive what you need. It will all be worth it, I promise! 

May nothing less than love and light enter your space always.