What is The Exchange? Let go of what you’re holding on to.
I recently released a video course called The Exchange. The Exchange presents an invitation to let go of what you’re holding on to in order to pick up or grab hold of what God has for you. It’s hard to pick something new up when your hands are already full, isn’t it? Though it is quite comical to watch people try to fit one more thing in their hands, it doesn’t always work very well.
I watch my kids do this. On the stairs sits a pile of their belongings I have collected from around the house that needs to be taken to their rooms. I watch with a grin as they load up their arms, drop things, try again, until they waddle up the stairs like little penguins trying not to let other items fall to the ground. Heaven forbid they take their things upstairs in two trips.
But who am I to talk, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree on this one. It can be almost a game to see if I can carry my grocery haul in one trip from the car to the kitchen. Because heaven forbid I should make two trips! Ha!
The truth is we all live with this notion that we are obligated to hold on to one more thing. The more full the load, the more things on our plates, the more productive or valuable we may feel. And yet we all know what happens when we pile on just one more thing…even if it’s a good thing.
At some point the pile comes crashing down, things get broken and we may get hurt in the fall. We drop balls, we let people down and we can end up with a real mess on our hands.
This is why Jesus calls us into the process of surrender. Surrender is critical for our faith walk. Surrender is critical to our living as a Christ follower at home. Home can be one of the most challenging places to learn how to live as a believer. Indeed it is the proving ground of our faith.
Surrender also takes effort. But a surrendered life actually takes less effort than trying to make behavior modifications on our own. Behavior modifications fall short. Only hearts changed by Jesus and the Holy Spirit last through the testing and trials. Maybe it’s time to take a close look at all we are holding on to. And bring it to the altar. Asking Jesus, what is it that He wants us to hold on to, what does He have for us?
I am guessing, Jesus’ best for us is not living so hurried and buried over with our to do’s that we have no time to get alone with Him. I am guessing Jesus would rather us stop all the “doing for Him” in order to spend more time “being with Him”.
Proverbs 23:26 says, “O my son, give me your heart. May your eyes take delight in following my ways.” (NLT)
I love this verse. The way of Jesus is simple. It’s not complex. We make it complex. We make “being a Christian” a task to accomplish instead of a relationship to delight in, and in doing so we miss the mark.
I can just hear the tender voice of God calling to us, His sons and daughters. Calling us to Himself. “Stephanie, give me your heart.” It is not a demanding voice. But a gentle and humble invitation into a life of rest and peace.
In 2016 I was at a place in my life where I was surrendered. I had surrendered to a lot of things, and was also trying to surrender to God. And the thing is, that didn’t go so well. God is a jealous God the Bible tells us, He doesn’t want part of us. Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross of our sins was too costly for us to just give Him bits and pieces, you know, the convenient parts, to Him. He wants us all. Every piece. Every broken piece.
I felt a tug on my heart. And heard His still small voice, “you talk about me, but your heart is far from me.” In other words, I had the act of a Chistian down. I could play the role well. I was groomed to do so in a Christian home. But my dreams, my ambitions, my values, my time, my thoughts and priorities did not reflect a life surrendered to God.
My life reflected a life surrendered to career, to productivity, to approval of others, and success at the expense of family time. BUT GOD…He has another plan. He showed me He was not okay with the scraps of myself that I was giving Him.
Praise God that the work of the Holy Spirit was on my life, and rescued me from this half in/half out kind of Christianity. Truly I would have been the lukewarm one spewed out of His mouth on the day of Judgement. (Revelation 3:16)
That’s right, I was not hot and I was not cold, I just existed in the middle. Trying to worship God while harboring idols of various sizes and shapes in my life. The thing is there is nothing that was inherently bad or harmful about how I was living. It was the compounded nature that all multiplied to a divided heart and doubled mind. (James 1:6-8)
Over the course of a few years, through various trials and circumstances little by little I began to surrender pieces of the broken parts of myself. Beliefs about myself that I held on to from my youth that lead to low esteem.
Little by little, day by day, Jesus met with me, as I daily surrendered and got quiet before Him, giving Him the time and space to speak to my heart. Some things changed quickly, like my shift out of the business world. Some things are still in process, like deep seeded beliefs and behaviors that stemmed from my growing up years.
What I know to be true is that we are all works in process. Eight year into this deeper walk with God and there is still the depths of God’s love, healing, wholeness that I have yet to encounter. The Exchange is not a program but a life choice. A decision that will be made daily. A daily choice to kneel before the Lord, and exchange the worries and the burdens of this world for His yoke that is light and easy.
Maybe it’s time we stop trying to carry everything on our own…stop dropping things…and sit with God. Maybe it’s time to ask God what it is that He has for us, as we lay down what we’re holding on to. Remember, we can’t pick up what God has for us until we first let go.
If you are ready to take the next step and accept the invitation to put down what you’re holding on to in order to pick up what God has for you, I invite you to click this link and begin your journey through The Exchange.
I can’t wait to see what God will do in your life as you daily surrender to His best for your life.
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