The Cost of Holding On When Urged to Let Go

Letting go is difficult because it requires that we take accountability, free ourselves from the prison of comfort, and make space for what God wants to do. In the process of letting go, we discover we have been holding on to bad habits, addictions, cycles, and patterns. Letting go allows us to muster up the courage to admit things we never would for us to move forward. Thus, letting go is painful… at least in the beginning stages. Yet, as we let go and trust that God is a Good Father who gives His children Good Gifts, we will experience His fullness.

I have learned that God cannot fill up a vessel that is already full of itself. Flesh sabotages and deceives us, but God wants to give us life. As I reflect on the doors I had to close this past month and the vulnerable conversations I had to have, I’m reminded of what happens when we don’t let go. We forfeit what God had in mind for us.

In Judges chapter six God calls on a man named Gideon who has been hiding from his enemies; the Midianites. Through an Angel, God tells Gideon that he is greater than his circumstances. “When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior” Judges 6:12 (NIV). Gideon responds with fear and doubt but eventually answers the call after God performs signs to prove He is with Gideon. Afterward, Gideon leads the Israelites into battle against the Midianites and experiences countless victories. God develops Gideon, establishes him, and blesses him, his family, and the Israelites. Nevertheless, Gideon falls into the trap of idolatry. Upon gaining victory from his enemies, Gideon requests gold from the Ishmaelites and used the gold to make an ephod. The ephod becomes a snare to Gideon, his household, and the Israelites. “Gideon made the gold into an ephod, which he placed in Ophrah, his town. All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family” Judges 8:27 (NIV).

All that Gideon and the Israelites worked for came tumbling down because they refused to let go. Gideon's story began with a promise of legacy, but it ended with him being ensnared by an idol. “No sooner had Gideon died than the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals. They set up Baal-Berith as their god and did not remember the Lord their God, who had rescued them from the hands of all their enemies on every side. They also failed to show any loyalty to the family of Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) in spite of all the good things he had done for them” Judges 8:33 (NIV).

The same bondage that God used Gideon to deliver them from was what they willingly went back to. How could this happen? Especially when God blessed them immensely, fought for them, and delivered them. Well, they were not willing to close unnecessary, and demonic doors. They did not want to sacrifice their flesh for God’s best. While it is heartbreaking to read, we must take a look at our own story and ask ourselves where in our life are we like Gideon. What have we allowed to become a snare to us, and what will we do about it?

I pray we close every door God says to shut and walk into his ordained doors.

Be Encouraged.

Love Monica