The Power of Letting Go!
For years I struggled with letting go of things, people, even the past. I’ve discovered that as a Believer In Jesus Christ, letting go (surrendering) not only is a necessary act of my will, but also something I can and must do in order to walk fully in God's power. Jesus himself gave us a wonderful example to follow in His own ability to let go of what He wanted. Luke 22:42 "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done."
One way to determine whether we are truly following after God’s heart or our own is to ask this question. Is there something (or someone) in my life that I haven’t let go of? If the answer to that question is even a tiny yes, then you probably need to do a heart check.
We have to remember that this life is a journey and sometimes there are things in our lives we want more than what God wants for us. There is no shame in this reality; it doesn’t make you a bad person, it just makes you human, like the rest of us. The bottom line is if you wanted something or someone and it/they are not in your life, well it’s probably not God’s will for you and you need to accept this and move on. We cause our own suffering and separation from God when we don’t surrender what we want.
So if this is the case, how does one learn to let go and stay in God’s will then?
I love the way the Message Bible words it in 1 John 5:13-15: My purpose in writing is simply this: that you who believe in God’s Son will know beyond the shadow of a doubt that you have eternal life, the reality and not the illusion. And how bold and free we then become in his presence, freely asking according to his will, sure that he’s listening. And if we’re confident that he’s listening, we know that what we’ve asked for is as good as ours.
The first thing you need is a real heart check. If you call yourself a Christian, do you really believe? I mean really believe that God is real and that God is Jesus? Next, do you believe beyond a shadow of a doubt, that because of His sacrifice on the cross that you now have a new Spirit living on the inside of you and that it's the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead? Do you believe this is your reality, not an illusion, some nice story? And, most of all do you really know how much God loves you?
It may seem kind of silly to ask these questions, but I honestly I believe that part of the reason we don’t walk in the power of Christ's resurrection is that we don’t even really deep down inside believe that God is real, that He loves us and wants the best for us. Perhaps there is a lie there that the enemy has placed in your mind and it's blocking the Truth. Maybe it’s because of false doctrine, poor teaching, etc. but if deep down, you doubt the Gospel is real and that we have that same power living on that inside of us as Born-again Blood bought Believers, this will greatly hinder the supernatural in your life and God’s ability to guide you and use you.
The number one thing to walking in God’s will is believing He was who He said He was, any ounce of doubt or unbelief will cause you a world of confusion. You need to know, that you know, that you know (not just in your head but your heart) Jesus is real and is the Lord of your life. If not get on your knees and humbly confess to yourself and God, do whatever it takes for you to have the assurance that the Gospel is real.
If your answer is yes I believe one hundred percent in the Gospel of Jesus Christ; then the next thing is to submit to God. Job 22:21-22 “Submit to God and be at peace with him; in this way prosperity will come to you. Accept instruction from his mouth and lay up his words in your heart.
I suggest you get into the habit of daily submitting to God’s will, not just when you need direction, or a prayer answered. Each day commit to walking in His will and His way. Every morning before we even step foot out of my bed, we need to acknowledge the presence of God in our lives and submit humbly to His authority and His will in our lives. I pray a short pray every day before I get out of bed, something like this, “Good Morning Father God, I’m so grateful for another day you have given me, Father do your will in my life today. Enable me to walk in step with your Holy Spirit today.” Amen!
So if you know you are in full belief of God, and you have fully submitted to Him, you now have the power to walk in His will. Know that when a door closes (or opens) in your life, that it is God’s will. Don’t try to kick the door down or force it open, or question Him, “God are you sure?” That’s just being rebellious. If you open a door in rebellion, God in His grace will let you, but you could end way off the track. You may go through some failure or hurt. God can and will use our detours to help you grow closer to Him, the truth is sometimes we need to go through stuff to get right with Him. However, if our goal here is to learn how to walk in step with His Spirit, let’s just make up our minds once and for all to do that and follow Him.
What I’ve learned through my share of detours is this: if something is God's will, the door will stay open, in some cases they seems to fling open, and you are able to take the next step forward and the next and the next.
Recently, I was asked to interview for a job opportunity. I had just prayed about needing a job and asked God to send me the perfect job. So imagine my surprise when a few days later I got an email out of the blue from a Head Hunter looking for someone with my skills. I immediately thought to myself; God is this you? After a few conversations on the phone, I had agreed to go on the interview and take the next step. Immediately after saying yes to this interview I began to question whether this was the job God had for me. It was very similar to a job I had left a year earlier, and the main part of the job would be doing something that I didn’t enjoy very much in my last job. I knew that if I got this job I would slowly become discontented. I had to ask myself was this just me wanting to take this job to pay the bills and not taking a job that I would enjoy and work at with all my heart.
Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t think you should say no to something just because you begin to have some doubts. Until you are hundred percent sure, I think it’s always best to take the next step and so on. We still need to keep going forward so we can discern if it’s God’s no and not the enemy or our flesh trying to keep us from moving into God’s will.
I went to bed that night wondering still if this was not the job God had for me, but I wanted to be certain before I turned down the interview. I fell asleep that night, I asked God to help me discern. That night I had a dream, I asked the Lord how do I know if I’m in your will? He said, “Look down.” When I did, I realized I was standing on a glass floor that was very high up off the ground, sort of like a glass floor in a tower. I felt a bit afraid and unsteady. Then God said, “Okay my dear, step forward.” As I took the first step a light came on, and God said to me, “As you take each step in my will, I will light the way, if each step does not light up, you will know you are not walking in my will, my Word will always be a light unto your feet.” I took another step, and it did not light up. When I woke up I immediately sent a message and declined the interview, I knew it wasn't God's will for me. God’s peace immediately came over me, then I heard the Lord say, “Well done, just wait.”
Letting go and trusting God is about letting God shut doors as well as open them. Sometimes we force things to end before their time. This process is all about intimacy with God, through prayer and reading the Word. It's about allowing time to rest and be still enough to recognize His voice, so in the midst of busyness, you still can discern which way to turn. It's an active process, it's not like you are doing nothing, the most important thing is to be sure you listen to God for His direction, whether it's a relationship, your career, your children, any area of your life, you are always moving forward and consulting the master with each step. There is supernatural power in waiting for Jesus to come alongside to guide you.
This graphic below from Godfruits.com shows a great way to discern when it's God’s presence leading you.
So today celebrate that you are filled with the ability to let go and wait on God. Rejoice that there is much peace in the waiting; I guarantee if God has closed a door, what He has for you will be so much better than what you thought you wanted in the first place. The great thing about this posture of surrendering your will and waiting on God is that as we do this we grow closer and closer to Him. To wait on God, we have to learn to listen; we have to become intimate and spend time in the Word and prayer so we can discern His will. To me, that’s the best benefit because learning to abide in Him brings us closer to His heart.
God bless you along the narrow path today! Laura Sterling, Narrowgate Traveller Ministries
John 15:4 (AMPC) - Dwell in Me, and I will dwell in you. [Live in Me, and I will live in you.] Just as no branch can bear fruit of itself without abiding in (being vitally united to) the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you abide in Me.
Prayer: Lord, I pray that everyone reading this will trust and obey you. That they will have peace knowing if what they wanted isn’t in their life right now, it wasn’t your will for them. You are a loving Father, who knows us best. You know the right timing, the right people, places and things we are to have. Help us to be okay to let go and believe you have a better plan for us. Help us to get to a place of knowing that if you, our Sovereign God want us to have something we pray for, it will be given to us. AMEN!
Psalms 27:14 - Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!
If you don't have a personal relationship with Jesus and want one. Just say this little prayer. Jesus, I need you, please come and be Lord of my life. Amen! Email and let me know you prayed that prayer, I'd love to celebrate with you and help you connect to the family of God - laurasterling@narrowgatetraveller.com
One way to determine whether we are truly following after God’s heart or our own is to ask this question. Is there something (or someone) in my life that I haven’t let go of? If the answer to that question is even a tiny yes, then you probably need to do a heart check.
We have to remember that this life is a journey and sometimes there are things in our lives we want more than what God wants for us. There is no shame in this reality; it doesn’t make you a bad person, it just makes you human, like the rest of us. The bottom line is if you wanted something or someone and it/they are not in your life, well it’s probably not God’s will for you and you need to accept this and move on. We cause our own suffering and separation from God when we don’t surrender what we want.
So if this is the case, how does one learn to let go and stay in God’s will then?
I love the way the Message Bible words it in 1 John 5:13-15: My purpose in writing is simply this: that you who believe in God’s Son will know beyond the shadow of a doubt that you have eternal life, the reality and not the illusion. And how bold and free we then become in his presence, freely asking according to his will, sure that he’s listening. And if we’re confident that he’s listening, we know that what we’ve asked for is as good as ours.
The first thing you need is a real heart check. If you call yourself a Christian, do you really believe? I mean really believe that God is real and that God is Jesus? Next, do you believe beyond a shadow of a doubt, that because of His sacrifice on the cross that you now have a new Spirit living on the inside of you and that it's the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead? Do you believe this is your reality, not an illusion, some nice story? And, most of all do you really know how much God loves you?
It may seem kind of silly to ask these questions, but I honestly I believe that part of the reason we don’t walk in the power of Christ's resurrection is that we don’t even really deep down inside believe that God is real, that He loves us and wants the best for us. Perhaps there is a lie there that the enemy has placed in your mind and it's blocking the Truth. Maybe it’s because of false doctrine, poor teaching, etc. but if deep down, you doubt the Gospel is real and that we have that same power living on that inside of us as Born-again Blood bought Believers, this will greatly hinder the supernatural in your life and God’s ability to guide you and use you.
The number one thing to walking in God’s will is believing He was who He said He was, any ounce of doubt or unbelief will cause you a world of confusion. You need to know, that you know, that you know (not just in your head but your heart) Jesus is real and is the Lord of your life. If not get on your knees and humbly confess to yourself and God, do whatever it takes for you to have the assurance that the Gospel is real.
If your answer is yes I believe one hundred percent in the Gospel of Jesus Christ; then the next thing is to submit to God. Job 22:21-22 “Submit to God and be at peace with him; in this way prosperity will come to you. Accept instruction from his mouth and lay up his words in your heart.
I suggest you get into the habit of daily submitting to God’s will, not just when you need direction, or a prayer answered. Each day commit to walking in His will and His way. Every morning before we even step foot out of my bed, we need to acknowledge the presence of God in our lives and submit humbly to His authority and His will in our lives. I pray a short pray every day before I get out of bed, something like this, “Good Morning Father God, I’m so grateful for another day you have given me, Father do your will in my life today. Enable me to walk in step with your Holy Spirit today.” Amen!
So if you know you are in full belief of God, and you have fully submitted to Him, you now have the power to walk in His will. Know that when a door closes (or opens) in your life, that it is God’s will. Don’t try to kick the door down or force it open, or question Him, “God are you sure?” That’s just being rebellious. If you open a door in rebellion, God in His grace will let you, but you could end way off the track. You may go through some failure or hurt. God can and will use our detours to help you grow closer to Him, the truth is sometimes we need to go through stuff to get right with Him. However, if our goal here is to learn how to walk in step with His Spirit, let’s just make up our minds once and for all to do that and follow Him.
What I’ve learned through my share of detours is this: if something is God's will, the door will stay open, in some cases they seems to fling open, and you are able to take the next step forward and the next and the next.
Recently, I was asked to interview for a job opportunity. I had just prayed about needing a job and asked God to send me the perfect job. So imagine my surprise when a few days later I got an email out of the blue from a Head Hunter looking for someone with my skills. I immediately thought to myself; God is this you? After a few conversations on the phone, I had agreed to go on the interview and take the next step. Immediately after saying yes to this interview I began to question whether this was the job God had for me. It was very similar to a job I had left a year earlier, and the main part of the job would be doing something that I didn’t enjoy very much in my last job. I knew that if I got this job I would slowly become discontented. I had to ask myself was this just me wanting to take this job to pay the bills and not taking a job that I would enjoy and work at with all my heart.
Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t think you should say no to something just because you begin to have some doubts. Until you are hundred percent sure, I think it’s always best to take the next step and so on. We still need to keep going forward so we can discern if it’s God’s no and not the enemy or our flesh trying to keep us from moving into God’s will.
I went to bed that night wondering still if this was not the job God had for me, but I wanted to be certain before I turned down the interview. I fell asleep that night, I asked God to help me discern. That night I had a dream, I asked the Lord how do I know if I’m in your will? He said, “Look down.” When I did, I realized I was standing on a glass floor that was very high up off the ground, sort of like a glass floor in a tower. I felt a bit afraid and unsteady. Then God said, “Okay my dear, step forward.” As I took the first step a light came on, and God said to me, “As you take each step in my will, I will light the way, if each step does not light up, you will know you are not walking in my will, my Word will always be a light unto your feet.” I took another step, and it did not light up. When I woke up I immediately sent a message and declined the interview, I knew it wasn't God's will for me. God’s peace immediately came over me, then I heard the Lord say, “Well done, just wait.”
Letting go and trusting God is about letting God shut doors as well as open them. Sometimes we force things to end before their time. This process is all about intimacy with God, through prayer and reading the Word. It's about allowing time to rest and be still enough to recognize His voice, so in the midst of busyness, you still can discern which way to turn. It's an active process, it's not like you are doing nothing, the most important thing is to be sure you listen to God for His direction, whether it's a relationship, your career, your children, any area of your life, you are always moving forward and consulting the master with each step. There is supernatural power in waiting for Jesus to come alongside to guide you.
This graphic below from Godfruits.com shows a great way to discern when it's God’s presence leading you.
So today celebrate that you are filled with the ability to let go and wait on God. Rejoice that there is much peace in the waiting; I guarantee if God has closed a door, what He has for you will be so much better than what you thought you wanted in the first place. The great thing about this posture of surrendering your will and waiting on God is that as we do this we grow closer and closer to Him. To wait on God, we have to learn to listen; we have to become intimate and spend time in the Word and prayer so we can discern His will. To me, that’s the best benefit because learning to abide in Him brings us closer to His heart.
God bless you along the narrow path today! Laura Sterling, Narrowgate Traveller Ministries
John 15:4 (AMPC) - Dwell in Me, and I will dwell in you. [Live in Me, and I will live in you.] Just as no branch can bear fruit of itself without abiding in (being vitally united to) the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you abide in Me.
Prayer: Lord, I pray that everyone reading this will trust and obey you. That they will have peace knowing if what they wanted isn’t in their life right now, it wasn’t your will for them. You are a loving Father, who knows us best. You know the right timing, the right people, places and things we are to have. Help us to be okay to let go and believe you have a better plan for us. Help us to get to a place of knowing that if you, our Sovereign God want us to have something we pray for, it will be given to us. AMEN!
Psalms 27:14 - Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!
If you don't have a personal relationship with Jesus and want one. Just say this little prayer. Jesus, I need you, please come and be Lord of my life. Amen! Email and let me know you prayed that prayer, I'd love to celebrate with you and help you connect to the family of God - laurasterling@narrowgatetraveller.com
