My words for tomorrow

So I am sick and this has been a crazy week for me. Too much at once. So instead of a blog post from the top of my head. Here's an excerpt of what I am teaching tomorrow at church to the career group (aka the singles).

Let it be…

"When I find myself in times of trouble, mother Mary comes to me,
speaking words of wisdom, let it be.
And in my hour of darkness she is standing right in front of me,
speaking words of wisdom, let it be.

Let it be, let it be, let it be, let it be.
Whisper words of wisdom, let it be.

And when the broken hearted people living in the world agree,
there will be an answer, let it be.
For though they may be parted there is still a chance that they will see,
there will be an answer. let it be.

Let it be, let it be, .....

And when the night is cloudy, there is still a light, that shines on me,
shine until tomorrow, let it be.
I wake up to the sound of music, mother Mary comes to me,
speaking words of wisdom, let it be.

Let it be, let it be, ....."

The Beatles

Can you let it be? It’s a hard place to get to. The place of giving up your hold over something. Maybe it’s a desire, a dream, a hope, a plan. There are times when God asks us to just let his plan for us be. But can we do this?

Giving up that control is so hard. We know intellectually that we are to trust him. But do we really?

I didn’t. It was a very hard thing to come face to face with. But it was so very necessary. The picture of Mary saying to the Angel of the Lord “Let it be to me as you have said” in Luke 1:38. Funny how the Beatles song reflects this passage so well. Reminding us that she let it be, and the most amazingly beautiful work of redemption came to pass through her obedience. Could God have done his work without her? Of course he could. But he chose to do it with her and through her life. She had a role planned out by him. It was beyond anything she could dream of I am sure. I find that in saying "No I want it my way!" to God we may be limiting the amazing work and power he has laid out before us. He can do it without us, but he wants us to be a part of it.

The main problem I had with letting go was that I didn’t trust that God’s plan would be the best one. I was pretty sure what I had planned would be best (and most certainly what I would enjoy the most), and he wasn’t getting in line. In fact he was going the opposite way. No fair I cried out! I try to be faithful to you and this is how you repay me?! Then it hit me. What an arrogant statement to make to the God of Heaven and Earth! I was shocked with my questioning of his plan and character. I had to repent. I found myself repeating over and over “let it be to me as you have said”. Giving up my will is a continual act of obedience. But its also freedom. To give up that control is to free yourself of the responsibility of it all landing on your shoulders. It’s somewhat easier just to listen and hear where you are to go next than to plan and plot it out yourself. And in the end I can find peace there.

Can you let go and let it be as he has planned for you?