Learning to Loosen Up and Enjoy the Ride
Written by Cheryl Boyce
Note To Parents:
Welcome back to Week 4 of Impact Toronto’s Fighting Words series! We are a welcoming church located in the Yonge and Eglinton area that wants to support our community both on and offline.
We hope you’re well, and last week’s “Fighting Words” was encouraging. This week we’re memorizing a short but powerful scripture. “Be Still And Know That I Am God.”
In our day to day life, it can be hard to figure out how to apply this command. We hope this short devotional sheds some light on that for you and your family and that you find rest in the simple but life-changing truth that He is God!
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DEVOTIONAL
This summer, I spent some time up at a cottage on Georgian Bay. The lake was pretty choppy, and I spent a lot of time on the boat with white knuckles tightly gripped around the railings. It wasn’t until the water was completely calm that I was able to relax.
I was trying to relax like everyone else, but the conditions kept me stressed. I wished that I could trust the boat captain and the vessel I was on to manage the weather so that I could loosen up a bit. Unfortunately for me, that only happened a few mornings and an evening or two when the water looked glass.
It got me thinking about how life is so much like that lake. Things can be smooth sailing from time to time, but a lot of the time, things can be a little wavy. Some of us spend our days worried about what could happen, while others trust that God will work it out and choose to enjoy their days regardless of their circumstances. That’s not to say that from time to time, we might not hit an unexpected wave and get freaked out, but staying like that is no way to live your life.
God doesn’t want us to live our lives like that either. He doesn’t want us hanging on for dear life and missing out on all the beauty that’s around us because we’re worried about what “might happen.”
He’s THE captain we can trust. We can loosen up and know that he is God and that all the struggling to stay safe is just wasted energy. Put your energy into trusting him and know that He is the one who is ultimately in control.
You don’t want to miss out on life because you spent all your time worrying about things that were God’s to deal with in the first place.
Matthew 6:27 asks an important question:
Can any one of you, by worrying, add a single hour to your life?
The truth is, we can’t. Worry won’t add a single day to your life, but
Some Stuff To Think About
Question 1: Do you spend a lot of time worrying about things?
Question 2: What is something that you have worried about, and it didn’t end up happening?
Question 3: What is something that you are worried about, and you would like for God to help you?
Challenge: This week, if you feel stressed out about something, remember to take a breath and remind yourself that you serve a BIG GOD who loves you and is in control. See if that helps to get rid of your worry. Don’t forget to pray that he will give you peace no matter what’s happening.
PRAYER
(Here’s a prayer to pray together or on your own as you memorize your “Fighting Words” this week.)
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you so much for today. Thank you that we can find rest in you. Lord, we pray that you would help us surrender control of our lives to you. Lord, help me to trust you in the storms and the ups and downs in life. Help me enjoy the life you have given me and teach me to trust you entirely. We are so grateful that you are our captain.
We love you!
Amen!