“Release. Just release. You’ve done the work, now release it and let God handle the outcome. Just release.”
Those words of wisdom from a friend rained down from my head to my heart over the next 24 hours, the last 24 hours of my time at the beach with the Lord.
I had gone there for 3 days to get away, to get perspective, unsure of what I would hear, when she offered those words of unsolicited but very needed advice. She didn’t know the chaos that was pummeling me from every side like a summer hurricane. She knew only of one situation that neither of us were able to influence but wanted very much to try.
“Just release,” she implored.
I’m not much of a big crier. Not that I think there is anything wrong with it, but my upbringing was such that tears were not tolerated, much less encouraged. I learned to be strong despite my pain. Now when I cry, I know one of two things (or both) are usually at play: either I’m truly at the end of myself, or the Lord is doing a deep work.
From the moment she spoke “Release,” the tears started to run down my cheeks. The more she explained, the harder the tears flowed until they were so fast and so thick that I could no longer see the beach on which I was walking. It might as well have been storming on that beach because it was in my heart.
Bless her heart, she wouldn’t know until a subsequent conversation how her words spoke into several areas of my life, not just the topic that originated our conversation.
Possible cancer? Release it. God is bigger than cancer.
Possible financial ruin? Release it. God takes care of the sparrows. Surely He watches over you.
Potential career change? Release it. God gave you your calling; He knows the plans He has for you and they are good.
A child being bullied? Release it. He is God’s child first and God cares for him even more than you do.
A child’s future pursuits? Release it. You’ve trained up your child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
A new ministry endeavor? Release it. God called you to it, He will see you through it in His way, His timing.
“Release it.” What did that really mean anyway?
I knew what it meant. God was telling me the same thing He had been telling me those few days as I walked with Him along the beach, just in a different way: “Trust me.”
He and I both knew that if I was being honest, I struggled with trust. Maybe it started as a toddler alone in the hospital. Or maybe it started as a child when my earthly father died. Or maybe it started when my husband lost his job after being diagnosed with cancer.
Somewhere along the line, I believed the enemy’s lie that I couldn’t trust God. But lately, the One who created me was beckoning me back to trust Him above all else.
In my worries and fears, I was projecting the enemy’s lies onto my future and believing them to be true. Yet He was challenging me to release my weighty concerns and trust what I couldn’t see but what I knew to be truth: God is good all the time.
You see, fear and faith both equally long to be expressed. But we have a choice. One is from the enemy who seeks only to steal, kill and destroy while the other comes from our loving Father who desires only good for us. It’s a choice.
Release it. What do you need to release today and trust God for?
Because of Him, Hope Prevails!
(If you have a question you’d like Dr. B to answer, contact her here now. Your name and identity will be kept confidential.)
A short brief about Hope Prevails.
Hope Prevails
Insights from a Doctor’s Personal Journey through Depression
Dr. Michelle Bengtson
Speaking from personal and professional experience, a neuropsychologist unpacks what depression is, shows how it affects us spiritually, and offers hope for living the abundant life.Set featured image
Neuropsychologist Offers Hope to Those Struggling with Depression
-By 2020, depression will be our greatest epidemic worldwide
- An estimated 350 million people worldwide suffer from some form of depression
- As with the bestselling My Stroke of Insight, the author experienced the same condition she treats
- Helpful features include personal stories, biblical truths, prayers, and music recommendations
In Hope Prevails, Dr. Bengtson writes with deep compassion and empathy, blending her extensive training and faith, to offer readers a hope that is grounded in God’s love and grace. She helps readers understand what depression is, how it affects them spiritually, and what, by God’s grace, it cannot do. The result is a treatment plan that addresses the whole person—not just chemical imbalances in the brain.
For those who struggle with depression and those that want to help them, Hope Prevails offers real hope for the future.
Hope Prevails is available now wherever books are sold. To find out more, see: https://drmichellebengtson.com/hope-prevails-book/.
I’ll keep you in prayer, Michelle! Sorry you are facing hard things. <3 Raising teens seems to be the season when other things hit, too. I'm going through some similar, very painful, things. And I'm learning to trust God in new ways also. Especially about the future. This is such a helpful post. It reminds me I'm not alone. Blessings!
Columba, it is in the hard things when we grow the most and when God has the greatest opportunity to show His faithfulness and goodness to His children. Praying you will experience that as well. What’s important is that we intentionally choose that #TrustPrevails!
It’s like you read my heart Michelle! My”training ground” is different, but I hear the spirit saying, “open your hands Kathy! Let me have the circumstance, the emotions, and the outcome.”
I’ll be praying for you as you release in your place of learning! And leaning!
I think we probably all have those times in life, Kathy, when the Lord has to pry open our hands and tell us to release whatever we are trying to hold onto to Him. He’s a more capable caretaker than I ever could be. And it’s so freeing, because in the releasing of whatever our “thing” or issue is, we also release the responsibility for the outcome and give that to Him as well. Go ahead and release, Kathy. You’ll be more peaceful and hopeful for it! Because of Him, Hope Prevails.
It is hard to trust God when the “big, bad” things happen or will happen. You’re right–we have to choose to release and trust because God has been faithful in the past. I choose to trust that He will be faithful in the future. The alternative (fear) isn’t very pretty.
Wise words here today. Why do we struggle so when God’s will for us is always the best? Thanks so much for encouragement to release, so needed. Blessings to you, neighbor!
What a beautiful, encouraging, wise, and lovely post. Thank you for writing with honesty and trust — may your words reach the many who need this message right now.
Holding onto our concerns is just another way we try to stay in control. Releasing the right to worry and fret over our cares is a statement of trust in the God in whom we say we believe.
Oh the blessing in that word, “Release.” Thank you for sharing your heart and your pain, as well as how God is coaxing you deeper into a resting trust. Praying for you, even as i work on releasing my own cares.
Oh Michelle, what a transformative moment on that beach for you! I love the conviction and the encouragement you share here, to RELEASE…
It sure seems like those three days were exactly what you needed to allow yourself to surrender all of the issues you may be facing and pour your heart out to the One and Only…
Thank you for sharing such a vulnerable and emotional piece so we can all be touched and moved by your story and your message.
The Lord always knows how to encourage our hearts when we need it the most. I have a few things I need to “release” to Him in this season. Blessings!
What a powerful post and a wonderful reminder for all of us to surrender our worry and anxiety to Him and release the negative thoughts. Thank you so much for sharing your heart!
Beautiful wisdom. We carry so much that could be given to God in meekness and trust!
Another amazing post! I am so encouraged by you! And so incredibly blessed to visit with you today! Thank you for such a phenomenal word! Bless you, sweet Sister! *HUGS* 🙂
Love this post!! I phrase that I always use for myself for the same worries is “let go” Thanks for sharing this uplifting post at the #HomeMattersParty – hope to see you again next week.
It is a choice we have to make over and over and over again. Thank you for the beautiful reminders, the faithfulness to your calling, and the ability to speak the words we all need to hear.
Thank you for sharing with us at #JoyHopeLive!