Are you being asked to let go of something? Maybe you are being asked to let go of old ways of thinking about yourself. Maybe you are being asked to let go of something dear to you. Whatever you are being asked to let go of, it will require courage.
We grow attached to things the way they are. It is always difficult to embrace change, even if it is a change that we are looking forward to. Change creates discomfort in our minds and hearts. Thinking of changing something familiar to us to something new can create a sense of fear. What if I don’t like the new way of being or doing? What if I can’t go back to the way things were before? What if this new thing doesn’t work for me?
We are familiar with the story of the monkey who saw a bright, shiny penny in the bottom of a vase. He was fascinated with the penny and wanted it very badly. He reached his little hand into the opening of the vase, and sure enough, he could grasp the penny in his hand. He went to pull his hand out of the vase, but the opening was only large enough to accommodate his hand if he let go of the penny. Now he had a dilemma. He could not hang onto the penny and get his hand out of the vase at the same time. In order to be free, he had to let go of the penny, the thing he found so beautiful. He would remain trapped until he released his treasure. How long do you think the monkey sat there with a vase stuck on the end of his arm?
Do you have a vase hanging on the end of your arm? Most of us do. Just think of the outdated images you hang on to of yourself? We have been promised a new life when we choose to walk with Spirit. Jesus has given us the guarantee of a new way of Being. Have you walked forth into the new way of Being in the world, or do you still have a few old ideas hanging off the end of your arm?
Do you still see yourself as weak and wounded? Do you see yourself as unworthy? Do you see others in the same way? As you can see, there are many things that we would benefit from letting go of. What keeps us hanging onto the old way of looking at things, except that we want to hang onto our shiny penny and still try to break free?
Jesus reminded us that you couldn’t put new wine into old skins, lest they break, nor can you put old wine into new skins because the same thing will happen. The fermenting, or ripening of the new wine would split the old skins. It is impossible for us to grow into a new way of Being if we insist on holding on to the old ways of thinking. In order to move forward, we must let go. In order to let go, we have to trust the Divine plan for our lives. We must summon the courage to let go of our shiny little penny for something much more valuable, our freedom.
What do you need to let go of today, in order to move forward into a new way of Being?
We grow attached to things the way they are. It is always difficult to embrace change, even if it is a change that we are looking forward to. Change creates discomfort in our minds and hearts. Thinking of changing something familiar to us to something new can create a sense of fear. What if I don’t like the new way of being or doing? What if I can’t go back to the way things were before? What if this new thing doesn’t work for me?
We are familiar with the story of the monkey who saw a bright, shiny penny in the bottom of a vase. He was fascinated with the penny and wanted it very badly. He reached his little hand into the opening of the vase, and sure enough, he could grasp the penny in his hand. He went to pull his hand out of the vase, but the opening was only large enough to accommodate his hand if he let go of the penny. Now he had a dilemma. He could not hang onto the penny and get his hand out of the vase at the same time. In order to be free, he had to let go of the penny, the thing he found so beautiful. He would remain trapped until he released his treasure. How long do you think the monkey sat there with a vase stuck on the end of his arm?
Do you have a vase hanging on the end of your arm? Most of us do. Just think of the outdated images you hang on to of yourself? We have been promised a new life when we choose to walk with Spirit. Jesus has given us the guarantee of a new way of Being. Have you walked forth into the new way of Being in the world, or do you still have a few old ideas hanging off the end of your arm?
Do you still see yourself as weak and wounded? Do you see yourself as unworthy? Do you see others in the same way? As you can see, there are many things that we would benefit from letting go of. What keeps us hanging onto the old way of looking at things, except that we want to hang onto our shiny penny and still try to break free?
Jesus reminded us that you couldn’t put new wine into old skins, lest they break, nor can you put old wine into new skins because the same thing will happen. The fermenting, or ripening of the new wine would split the old skins. It is impossible for us to grow into a new way of Being if we insist on holding on to the old ways of thinking. In order to move forward, we must let go. In order to let go, we have to trust the Divine plan for our lives. We must summon the courage to let go of our shiny little penny for something much more valuable, our freedom.
What do you need to let go of today, in order to move forward into a new way of Being?
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