let go, let god

Have you ever heard people say that they can't let go?

Have you ever had your friend tell you he can't let go?

Have you ever said you can't let go?

I know I have.

I'm beginning to believe that it isn't a case of us being unable to let go of someone or something that's important to us. Rather it's more of us not wanting to (despite our constant denial).

However, this stubborness isn't unwarranted. It's probably due to the deep impression the person or the event (or whatever else it may be) left on us that makes us feel that we simply can't let go. And more often than not, there is also the fear of letting go. We just don't know what's to come.

But there is an answer to it all; Him.

Hah.. I can hear some of you say... How can it be? How can you (as in me) be so simplistic; so naive.

Naive or not, I know that He is the answer to this. Perhaps to all our other problems as well. With our own strength, we might as well not try since we're doomed to fail; we'd probably be even more discouraged than when we started. But He has promised to guide us through and asked us to cast our cares on Him.

By letting go, He's asking us to let God. In other words, by giving Him the things or people we so tightly hold on to, He grants us peace instead. Grace, mercy and love. A larger capacity to forgive. The first step is to ask; is to come to Him.

I know it to be true; I myself struggled and it was only when I realized how simple it was - all I needed to do was to look to Him and trust that He would do it for me as long as I was willing to give it to Him. Simple but not easy. We must be aware of the difference or we will be fooled in thinking that it requires no effort on our part.

But God plays a much bigger role here and that we need to understand.

If only we could see, if only we could know....

The Lord declares:
"As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."

He promised:
"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."

"With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

In a way, we were right saying we can't let go; not without Him we can.

Take heart. So many have gone before and so many can testify of His great love and grace. He is faithful and if you would only let go and let Him take it for you... It's hard to explain the joy that comes from resting in His abundant love.

Psalm 34:8 - Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

God bless. :)

closer

Every tear that had to fall from my eyes,
Every day I wondered how I'd get through the night,
Every change life has thrown me
I'm thankful for every break in my heart;
I'm grateful for every scar
Some pages turned;
Some bridges burned;
But there were lessons learned.

I used to ask Him if He could take the pain away. I used to break down and cry helplessly pleading He would see the pain and comfort me. It didn't go away; but He held me through it all. Words cannot express how comforting it was to know that my Father saw my pain; and never once did He leave me to face it all alone.

Now I look back and thank God for every bitter experience I've been through. Even though I can't fully understand why it happened; I know it was to prepare me for something greater...

I finally found out the 'truth'. At least; it's what I'm supposed to believe. Things are still not cleared up; I wanted the truth. But it seems like I've only gotten part of it. Things are still left unsettled; not clarified. I thought it would be; but I was wrong again. Then I decided to do something about it. Cause I won't have the chance to anymore; until I realized things I didn't see before. Things I always knew; but never really applied to me. Things He taught me yet I never really understood. Things I keep reminding myself; but never really tried to follow..

In the midst of confusion, brokenness and despair; I told him I didn't understand why. He was silent. And then.. He said..

I want you to have the best.. Would you allow me to give it to you?

I'm still feeling the sting. It still saddens me at times. I feel used; feel like I've been tampered with... But all this only brings me back to Him; brings me nearer and nearer.

I've been lying to myself for too long... It's time to come back.

We don't need the answers to all of life's questions. We just need to know that He knows what He's doing. He's our Father after all.

Jesus, You're all I need.

The Surrendered Saviour

[hope you would spare some time to read this.. =)]

From eternity past, through all of time, and through all of eternity future, Jesus' life was, is, and always will be, one of absolute surrender.

John 6:38 - "I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of Him who sent me."

It was Good Friday yesterday.. Was a pretty normal day for me; went to work. And at night, went to Infuse. They showed the movie The Passion Of The Christ (half of it).. I've only watched a few scenes from the movie, very long ago.. So it was something fresh for me.. Watching the pain He went through and thinking how much he suffered, I cannot imagine how it must have been... It's true that NO one could ever have such love.. And it compels me to follow Him even more closely..

These few weeks, I have learnt alot about surrender.. And if there's anyone to make an example of in this area, it's Jesus himself.. He was 100percent God yet 100percent human.. And because of that, he struggled too.. But His desire to do the will of God enabled Him to go through all the suffering and pain that we could be saved..

If you say you love God, are you then willing to surrender to His will? Some of us think that loving God and surrendering are two very different things.. But the truth is, love = surrender.. For when you truly love a person, you would surrender all for that person... Do we love God this way? Every day of our lives, are we surrendering our life, our body, our tongue, our time, our possessions, our mind, our will, our affections, our relationships and ourselves to Him?

For example:

Do we live with the conscious realization that all our time belongs to God, or have we merely reserved a portion of our time for the 'spiritual' category of our lives?
Are we morally pure - what we see, what we think, what we do, where we go, what we listen to, what we say?
Do we treat any of our possessions as if they were ours rather than God's?
Are we disciplining our minds to get to know God and His word better?
Are we wasting our mind on worldly knowledge or pursuits that do not have eternal, spiritual value?
Do we constantly seek to know and to do the will of God in the practical, daily matters of life?
Are we allowing anyone or anything other than Christ to control our emotions and responses?
Do we love God more than we love ourselves? Do we seek His interests, His reputation, and His pleasure above our own?
Is there any part of ourselves - our plans, relationships, possessions, emotions, career, future - that we are knowingly holding back from God?

Many a time, we expect God to answer our prayers. We expect Him to grant us our heart's desires. We expect Him to do this and that... Rarely do we bow the knee and say 'Yes Lord I surrender all to You. Do what You will'.

It is never easy to be fully surrendered to Him.. But that doesn't give us a reason NOT to try.. After all, radical love is when we are willing to surrender to Him.. And that means; even if things do not go the way you want it to; even though it will be painful; even if you will not understand; Surrender... After all, He is God... It's time we stop living for ourselves and start giving our all to Him...

For this is what I'm glad to do
It's time to live a life of love that pleases You
And I will give my all to You
Surrender everything I have and follow You
I'll follow You