Let Go of Anything Weighing You Down  

Are you making any resolutions for the new year? We tend to see the flipping of the calendar as the starting line of a new race – one in which we are committed to running better. Sometimes we decide that this is a good time to add some new or different activity to our lives. We might start the year determined to exercise more, to eat healthier foods, or to begin some long-planned project. Some of us may commit ourselves to greater involvement in certain spiritual disciplines, such as more regular church attendance, Bible reading, and prayer.  

While adding certain things to our lives can be beneficial, we often have to do some subtraction first. Before Christmas we went to see our granddaughter dance in a performance of The Nutcracker. She did a marvelous job, but it was somewhat bittersweet. She had decided to give up dance and to make this her last performance. It wasn’t that she didn’t enjoy this activity anymore, but there were other things she wanted to get involved in. Therefore, she needed to let go of an activity that required such a commitment of her time in order to make room for something else.

   I have found myself having to do that as well. I hadn’t planned on it, but it became somewhat of a recurring theme as this year has wound down to a close. I sensed God leading me to let go of a couple of areas of ministry in which I have been involved for many years. As circumstances and priorities had changed in recent times, my perspective concerning these particular activities had changed as well. I think I had been hanging onto them primarily due to the length of time I had been doing them and due to the blessing they have been. However, the Lord’s direction seemed to make it clear that it was time to let go.

 It reminds me of the Bible verse which says, “Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1). As a new year begins, we have a race to run and new opportunities to pursue. However, we may need to “lay aside” a few weights in order to be better able to do so. I am not talking primarily about sinful actions, although this verse includes those and anything in our lives that falls into that category definitely needs to be forsaken. But I am focusing more on other “weights”. Many of those can be good activities. They can even be worthwhile ministries. Yet we may need to let go of some of them in order to make room for what the Lord wants to include in our lives as we move forward.

In my case, I clearly have heard the message to let go, but I am not yet sure what the Lord may have in mind to replace those activities I am giving up. Sometimes we may be called to make room for something else, but then have to simply keep waiting and trusting until the Lord opens that new door of opportunity.

What may the Lord be calling you to lay aside as we head into this new year? Have you just been hanging onto something because it has been a part of your life for so long that it is hard to give it up? Is it still a vital part of God’s will and plan for your life? We have a race to run in 2023. Under God’s direction, be willing to lay aside anything that would hinder you from running it well.