Patti Burris

Philippians 3:13,14  Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

As I step into this new season, I have felt the importance of letting go of the past. The past has a way of locking us into a prison of fear, worry, anger, confidence issues, addictions, and the list goes on. I don’t want to be trapped by the circumstances of the past. I want to be able to step into this new season washed clean, brand new. I have to completely surrender those issues that stem from the past. I need to give them to God for good. I need to let go of the fear I hold on to to protect myself from being hurt, it’s holding me back from realizing the call God has on my life. I need to let go of my lack of confidence in my abilities, and the not truly believing who I am in God. I need to embrace the fact that I am a beautiful woman of God, I am a princess, a daughter of the King of Kings, I have been adopted by the Lord of Lords (John 1:12), I am an heir with Jesus Christ (Galatians 4:6-7, Romans 8:15), I am a member of God’s household (Ephesians 2:19)! What’s even better is that I am not the only one! God loves you too! You are special to Him and He wants you to claim that special place as heir with Jesus. It’s not easy, believe me I know! It’s a day-by-day process for me, but here is an exercise I used to help in the process:

1. List every issue that you hold onto.

2. For every issue, write out why you hold onto that issue (ex: I hold onto my fear so I don’t have to do anything that I may be rejected or ridiculed for. It keeps me “safe”.)

3. For every issue, write why holding onto that issue is not working for you anymore. (ex: holding onto my fear is keeping me from pushing myself out of my comfort zone and answering the call God has placed on my life.)

4. Picture a life of freedom from this issue and what that would look like. Dream BIG and write out your vision of what life would look like without this issue in your life. What would you be pursuing if it weren’t for this issue? (ex: My dream is to be an intercessory missionary and to encourage women and children.)

5. For every issue, write out steps that you can take to let go of that issue. These are bite sized action steps, but they need to be pushing you into a life of freedom. (ex: to let go of my fear, I continue to pray 10-15 second prayers on the microphone during intercession sets and I gave a 1-2 minute testimony of my experiences in the Fall internship.)

6. Write each issue on a little piece of paper. Now, I want you to tear up the pieces one by one. As you let go of each piece, say a simple prayer of surrender (ex: “God, I surrender my fear to you, I know that you are in control. in Jesus name, I let go of my fear. Help me to focus on you as I take these steps to freedom, Amen.) Flush the pieces down the toilet or burn them if you want, as long as you let go!

7. Remember that letting go is a process, a journey. Don’t panic if you have a setback, because you probably will. Pick yourself up and keep moving forward, keeping your focus on Jesus.

I know, that as I trust God and seek to do his will, there will be many, many times when I will feel and will have to face my fears. Will I falter? Possibly, but I will keep my focus on Jesus and keep moving forward into a grace-filled, blessed season of life.

*I wanted to add that this is just an exercise to help you release an issue. With some issues we may need help from someone with experience in counseling, healing or a freedom ministry. I am not that person. There is no shame in seeking help to deal with things. I actually did go through a Freedom ministry to deal with my fear. So, seek help if you need to and you can use this as an added exercise in letting go.