Let It Go

I’ll admit it.  I love the song, “Let It Go” from the movie Frozen.  I resonate with Elsa.  People told me all my life how to respond to circumstances when inside I was angry, sad, frustrated, or even elated.  This song reminds me to let it go, but it can mean more than the story Elsa is telling.  People struggle all the time because they want to return to the “Good old days.”  Were the “Good old days” really that good?  If they were, we never would have changed anything.  There were happy times in the past.  There are happy times in the present, and the future is waiting for us to enter it with joy and enthusiasm, but we will never be able to do that if we hold on to the past.

It’s not easy to let go.  In fact, it’s one of the most difficult actions we can take.  If it were so easy, then the flippant cliché “Let Go and Let God” would not have been created.  Those clichés (Although they can be true) are just responses when we really don’t want to listen or help others. It’s more than that cliché.  If it were that easy, no one would hang on to what they hold so dear.  It takes  trust. 

Trust is hard.  It’s hard to trust what will happen in the future when we cannot see it.  It’s hard to trust that the situation at work or school will get better when it continues to get worse, or the wrong leadership is in place.  It’s hard to trust leaders in the church that make and continue to make decisions that divide rather than unite.  It’s difficult to trust when we have to let people make their own decisions in life when we are not completely sure that they will. 

Trust can be attained.   We have to let go of the control.  When we struggle to trust, we struggle with lack of control.  It’s not that we are power hungry.  It’s that we want to know what will happen with our lives and the lives of our loved ones when life begins to spin out of control.  It can be a new job, a move to another community, or a new journey in life.  We have to allow God to lead us and trust Him that with whatever decisions, God’s protection is over us.

Let go of the past.  The present needs us to live in it.  Look to the amazing possibilities of the future.  It is waiting for us to make a difference in the world.  Let go of those areas in life that are holding you back from being the absolute best that you can be.  Trust in God and allow Him to guide you into the best life that you can ever experience.  

Church Politics

From a post on social media, I started watching a train wreck with a church in the Midwest on social media sites.  They fired pastors for no spiritual or moral wrongs, and other pastors and even an elder resigned from their positions in the church.  It was because of philosophical differences.  It was like watching a bad soap opera or a bad movie that you know you shouldn’t watch, but you can’t stop watching because it pulls you back.  That’s what church politics do.  They pull us backward and not forward. 

I have attended church all my life, and I have been on full time staff at two churches.  I had three internships while I was in college, and currently volunteer at a Mega church in Los Angeles. During all my encounters with church, I discovered that even in the best of circumstances, churches can put policy above people and people will react and become distant from the church and God.  It’s when we desire to have what we want rather than what is best for the kingdom of God to move forward.

I don’t know this church.  I do know that they are not the first to experience this, and unfortunately, they will not be the last.  Here is what I have discovered in my journey in recovering from hurt from the church: God is great.  People stink at some point in their lives.  God is bigger and better than any human being on this planet.  Church is full of people who sin, make mistakes, and disagree with us.  Jesus told Peter that it was on him that he would build his church.  Jesus chose the disciple who spoke up when others knew to be silent.  He jumped into situations with full force, like walking on water, and then lost faith.  That’s whom Jesus chose to build his church because Jesus knew that people were imperfect, and we needed a leader who knew his imperfections and continued to follow Jesus and bring others to Him.  Jesus always wants us to put people over policies, or programs, or ministries. 

My pastor unknowingly gave me a great understanding this morning.  “The church is full of hypocrites because the world is full of hypocrites, so no one has the right to judge others.”  (Erwin McManus)  The church must be a place where people can bring their brokenness and begin to find healing.  People do that not policies, programs, or ministries.  The purpose of the church is to bring the kingdom of God to earth.  God’s kingdom is one where people are redeemed. 

People need people who God has given variety of gifts. We need to use all the gifts that people are given.  With their gifts, great things will occur because God uses people at their best and at their worse. We need the church.  We need people to build us up.  We need people to challenge us and encourage us.  We need people to lead us to Jesus, to pray for us and to teach us.  The church is not perfect because no human is perfect.  To that church in the Midwest, you are in my prayers.  Let us all remember to take our own imperfections and use them to bring people to the perfect Christ.  It’s how Jesus established it with his twelve bumbling disciples.  That way, when the train begins to get off track, enough people are there to push it back in the right direction.   

Starting Over

Every year young people to get start over with their academic careers and begin a new school year with anticipation that this year will be so much better than the year before, whether that difference is academically or socially or both.  For the last twelve years I have embarked on this renewal of a career that I once left behind, and I have discovered that I get to start over, but I get to do it every day.

As I approached this school year, I was armed with a new approach to the classroom.  I was honest in my end of the year narrative to my administrators of what I needed to do to improve as a teacher last year, and my reward was a conference in the Walt Disney Resort in Orlando, Florida.  As much fun as the location was, the conference was not just informative, but it also challenged me and changed the way I approach the classroom.  As I look at life, I may need to be attentive to events, books, friends, family, and any other medium that can guide me to have a life do over.

It all begins with recognizing habits that are not healthy, and starting with habits that are healthy. It is approaching life in a way that requires a challenge to look introspectively and discover what needs to be done in order to have a new day.  The first step is recognizing that I have flaws and I make mistakes all the time.  One habit I’m trying desperately to quit and yet struggle to do so is the habit of replaying the mistake in my head over and over again.  Some people call it negativity, but what they don’t know is that it plays over and over because so many people reminded me of my flaws and mistakes all my life, which created a habit for me to focus on my flaws.  It’s a difficult habit to break.  It’s one that I work on daily and one that can be conquered. 

The second habit is to start every day as if it is brand new, which it is. It’s like starting a new school year with a blank notebook and anticipation that this year will be great.  God gives us all a new day every day.  He wants us to approach each day with newness and to continue his work every day.  God has given us the new. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!”  With a fresh start in Christ, I get to be new every day and allow the past to pass away. 

No matter what happens in life, there is a new day.  Each new day comes with new ideas and promises.  As the start of the school year begins, I must remember to start each day with the new idea that I can make a difference with the gifts he has given me.  I have to let go of the past and step into the future with a notebook and create words that will inspire.   I cannot worry about those who will dislike or envy.  God doesn’t make any mistakes, but He knows we as humans do, and he has given us grace and mercy through his son.  I can strengthen my relationship with God ever day as I discover new understandings.  So, I come humbly with my supplies to start each new day and love the supplies that God gives me and brings to me.  It is then that I understand that with God there is an eraser.    

Speed Bumps

We all encounter speed bumps in life.  They may come upon us unexpectedly, or we slow down before we get to them.  No matter how we get over them, the point is we must move forward and travel.  As the end of summer approaches, I have reflected on my life and realized that when I am on the other side of the speed bump, I can look back and see the progress that I have made. 

Speed bumps can come in many forms.  They come in the forms of health problems, people who criticize, people who threaten us; they come with failures at work or school, failures in relationships, or any other burdens that try to divert us from the road we are travelling.  Speed bumps slow us down, and sometimes we just may need to slow down and cautiously go forward while taking a moment to remember how we got to this part in our journey. 

During the trials in life that are speed bumps, I need to remember to be articulate, wise, and strong.  I need to lean on Jesus.  I need to not allow others to zap the energy out of me, and trust me; they will do everything they can to do that.  Why?  In short, if they zap the energy out of me, then they stop me from doing God’s will.  It’s all over the Bible with several characters encountering the same people, just with different names, faces, and living at a different time in history.  Like any speed bump in the road, we need to just drive forward and continue to the destination.  There is a future generation on the other side waiting for us.  We don’t forget the other side of the speed bump, but instead, we pass on what we have learned from that side.  We leave the unkind words and actions behind us, learn from them, and understand how they can strengthen us in the future.

When I encounter speed bumps, I must remember that although I feel alone, I am not.  Not only is Jesus with me, but also I need to look for the people that Jesus provides for me.  It’s so much easier to get over a speed bump with others because we all encourage each other.  We cannot do it on our own.  We need Jesus and people.  It took me several years to learn that, but at least I learned it.  Now, it’s time that I put it into complete practice.