What are you keeping from God?

Corrie ten Boom many years ago said this, “Don’t hold onto anything so tightly that Jesus can’t take it from you.”

Corrie was a lady who knew adversity, torture, hate, and slavery. Her family hid Jewish people, from the Nazis but were captured with them and sent to concentration camps, everything they had was taken from them, everything they knew changed, every one of their friends and family gone, she lost everything except her faith.

Her hope, her joy was not in things or people, it wasn’t even in her freedom or family, at a young age she was separated from everything and everyone she knew, except Christ.

Today people live in fear and anxiety, worry, and anger these are not just words that taunt us, these are emotions and feelings we struggle with every day that rule our lives. They are tools in the devil's arsenal that lead to depression, death, and destruction, we must learn too let them go.

Everyone is looking for peace, joy security and hope, the problem is we are looking in the wrong place. We look and may find temporary peace, hope or security but if it is in people, things or our surroundings it can all change overnight.

In Corrie's world, it did, they went from family meal time to hiding in a wall to save their lives, to being herded like cattle into concentration camps where most of them died, almost overnight.

In July 2010 our lives were on the upswing after great financial loss and starting over from ground zero in our 40s , we were starting to see new light, then one day I woke up and couldn’t walk, a month later the doctors tell me that I will never work full time again, I lost my health, and my ability to earn an income to provide for my family.

But I gained new faith, God's peace overwhelmingly took over our lives, He has provided every day for every need we have, and He still does.

I learned what Corrie had said to be true, not to hold onto something so tight that Jesus couldn’t have it, how can God give us more blessings when we hold onto the past?

God has so much to give us if we are willing to receive Him. When we stop pursuing control and pursue Christ, it doesn’t matter what goes on around us, or in us, or to us, for we understand that we have no control, most importantly though we learn God is in control.

If you’re hope, joy, peace or security are in your finances, job, family, health, home or others, then they are temporary and subject to change in the blink of an eye.

Only when these things are in Christ will we have what we're looking for and what everyone else is looking for.

Don’t hold onto anything or anyone so tightly that they can’t go into the hands of Jesus, for there is no safer place any of us can be.

Wherever you’re at right now, if your faith is being challenged, know God is still on the throne, He has not and will not forsake you. He is with you, learn to walk with Him at His pace, He will sustain you.

We need to trust the Lord always, make Him the desire of our hearts, do as He says, commit our ways to Him no matter what, and wait on Him to move in our lives.

God’s word says this;

“Trust in the Lord and do what is good; dwell in the land and live securely. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act, making your righteousness shine like the dawn, your justice like the noonday. Be silent before the Lord and wait expectantly for him; do not be agitated by one who prospers in his way, by the person who carries out evil plans. Refrain from anger and give up your rage; do not be agitated — it can only bring harm. For evildoers will be destroyed, but those who put their hope in the Lord will inherit the land.”Psalms 37:3-9 CSB

“Therefore I tell you: Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing? Consider the birds of the sky: They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they? Can any of you add one moment to his lifespan by worrying? And why do you worry about clothes? Observe how the wildflowers of the field grow: They don’t labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these. If that’s how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t he do much more for you-you of little faith? So don’t worry, saying, ‘What will we eat? ’ or ‘What will we drink? ’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”Matthew 6:25-34CSB

“Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. After dismissing the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. Well into the night, he was there alone. Meanwhile, the boat was already some distance from land, battered by the waves, because the wind was against them. Jesus came toward them walking on the sea very early in the morning. When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost!” they said, and they cried out in fear. Immediately Jesus spoke to them. “Have courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter answered him, “command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come.” And climbing out of the boat, Peter started walking on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the strength of the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand, caught hold of him, and said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. Then those in the boat worshiped him and said, “Truly you are the Son of God.”Matthew 14:22-33 CSB​