Holding it Loosely {and FREE Printable!}

Holding things loosely is a challenge for me.

To believe and pursue something God has for me, yet remain open, faithfully trusting that His plan is the plan to follow, not mine, is so tough.

Loosely. What a word.

To hold fast to Him, grounded in His truth, I am emboldened to step out and do something new, something I never would have dreamed of on my own, something good and exciting and challenging. Yet, all is a gift from Him; not a gift from me to me.  No matter what He reveals for me to do, I must, as a dear friend so wisely put it, be willing to yield.

Holding things loosely, yielding to God.  Why is this so hard?

Why do I hold onto things so tightly, Lord?  Even when I feel I am obeying You, reaching towards You, wanting what You have for me, I find my actions pointing toward loving myself more than loving You. I find myself taking what You have for me, grabbing it with anticipation, and then looking to myself to be in charge and running with closed fists.  The only thing I need to hold to tightly is You, Father.  I want to respond to the freedom You offer, of You living in me, and not control the outcome–distorting it, perverting it, twisting it into something that was never what You intended it to be.

The difference between an open heart and a closed one is our willingness to respond to God.We may be open in responding to Him, by what we’ve heard Him whisper to us, in the past. But I must ask myself, am I continuing to seek Him, am I continuing to want to hear Him, this day?  Heard versus hearing.  Closed versus open.

Let me hear, let me be open.  Let me surrender, Father.  Let me run this race with the joy of Your arms holding me up, not mine, wings for my feet, instead of chains of pride and self-worship.

These chains are heavy, Father.  The race towards this throne I seek to place myself on . . .well, it isn’t comfortable here.  More importantly, I don’t see You here, on this cold, empty seat.  I want to climb down.  I want my journey to be with You, to You, not solo.

It is lonely and dark where You are not.

I need to continue to hear, continue to listen.  Abiding, staying, yielding . . . these terms do not describe any grab-and-go situation.  My walk with You is not a race to run with hands held tightly to my chest, protecting the prize as I ward off distractions from my path.  Hold it loosely. Give what You have given me away. Be held closely by You, abiding with You, by accepting the freedom that comes with listening and yielding, following Your path, with all that You bring into the path.  Being willing to yield.

Let me rise up to You, in my bowing to Your will. Let me stand tall with You at my side, in humbleness  to Your truth.  Let my heart be open, alive, not closed and still.  I lift my hands to You in surrender, seeking forgiveness, open, needing You more.

Do you struggle, like me, with letting go of control and trusting God, in the everyday?

To help us remember, here is a free print, just for you! Just right click, save it as a .jpg, print it, and use it however you like!