Letting Go to Grow: the Startling Secret to Contentment

Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. John 12:24 ESV

“God, I don’t understand why Sandra has a beautiful green leaf and I am stuck in this hard shell,” Lucille prayed.

“We were seeds together, God, but she let go of the flower before I did and then she disappeared. Now she is getting taller every day. I wish I had her height and if I had a leaf I would be able to serve You, but I can’t now. Not here I can barely hang on.”

Sound familiar? Fear often keeps me inert. I decide if I can’t sing like her or don’t have the resources he has or I just don’t want something to change then I can’t serve God. I fear failure and sacrifice.

“At the beginning of every act of faith, there is often a seed of fear. For great acts of faith are seldom born out of calm calculation.” Max Lucado

Often God calls us to let go of things so that He can grow better things. And there is fear involved. Fear of losing something special, of change, of growth, of saying goodbye. Still there is excitement. It reminds me of my days at the public swimming pool climbing up the high dive ladder. Walking to the end of the board heart wildly beating fearful and yet tingling with excitement. I’d bend my legs and jump – I was never brave enough to throw a flip – pencil straight into the water. God often brings us to these acts of faith where fear and excitement collide. And we have to decide if we are going to jump or climb back down the ladder.

Jumping means leaving the comfort of the ground. It means sacrificing what we know for what is next. And it hurts, it breaks us of the things we hold dear of the things we believe will make us secure. As the air whistles around and we speed to the pool below, we don’t have time to compare ourselves to others. We just trust that God called us to this act of faith and He will handle the results.

It is time we stop comparing ourselves to others and let go. In the free fall of faith, we will find our hope and joy in God alone.

I can’t wait to see how God will grow us as we let go and find contentment in Him.