Letting Go

We are always holding on to something! We just can not seem to let go of clothes we wish we could still fit, memories of a lost love, shoes that have worn down to nothing, shirts from college days with holes in them, hair-dos that need some serious attention, bad habits that are detrimental to your health, and memories of how somebody wronged you years ago. This the season and the time to just let it go and stop holding on to things and people that are killing your spirit, interrupting positive energy, and causing pain in your life.

Letting go is like taking a pair of scissors and just cutting it- the end it’s over! However, many of us don’t want to sever ties that needlessly bind us to yesterday. Yesterday is not coming back, so stop looking back- this only slows your progress towards your future. In the book of Ruth, she stopped dwelling on her losses (and she lost much). She lost her husband, the home they made together, the possibility of having children, but most of all she lost things that were most familiar to her and the possibilities of what life could have been. You would think that she would complain but she wept silently as she moved on with life.

Now on the flip side Ruth’s mother-in-law Naomi mourned & held on to her losses (her husband and both sons all died). Her pain showed in her words and actions, and she did not mind telling anyone about her troubles. She even referred to herself as Mara meaning she was bitter.
We have examples of two people who lost much but one knew life would continue with or without her so she was determined to move on, and she did. Ruth is a good example of not dwelling too long on the past and moving forward. She did not complain about what was done to her, how she was now homeless, how she left a home she shared with her husband with only things she could carry…..but she moved on. We so often want to shout from the mountain tops our hurts, pains, losses, and misfortunes…wallowing in our anger and self-pity. But today take a note from Ruth and let it go…keep moving and begin to love life again. We miss out on our blessings because we have our heads in the sand, our eyes full of tears, or we are too busy running off at the mouth about days long gone. There is a saying; something must die so that something new can live. I never really understood this until recently. It took me loosing my health to learn to truly trust God in every aspect of my life- and He is faithful. It is sad to say but sometimes we do have to loose or let go of some things in our lives so that God can replace the old with something even better.

Naomi did not understand this concept, but day after day she watched Ruth trudge on and make new memories, new relationships, be in a new place and as Ruth accepted the newness in her life she was blessed with far more than she had before. Now, I am not trying to say just forget your past, because we do need to understand our past so that we can accept our future. Don’t get stuck in your past not allowing new things/people to come into your life because you are too busy at the scene of life’s accident. God has so much love for us but we have to remain in His space during this time we have here on earth in this life, so He can help us navigate through life. Open your heart to receive Him and all He has to give you. Let go today and watch God bless you far more than you can ever think to be blessed.