Earlier today, I was in my office and my girls were downstairs. My middle daughter, Bri, comes upstairs to ask me something, but her father tells her to ask him instead. We are working on them not always relying on me for everything (as if moms have all the answers). Dads know how to do stuff and have good answers, too. However, she decided that she would just not ask if she had to ask him. Time passes, and I forget that she even had a question. When I finally make my way downstairs, Bri is eating a bowl of cereal on the floor, and there is a nice size mess in the kitchen. She apparently created an opening in a new box of cereal but couldn’t get it quite right, so she made a mess and didn’t clean, nor did she tell anyone a mess had been made. When I asked her about it, she told me that she didn’t ask me for help because she couldn’t, and she didn’t ask her father because she was afraid he would tell her no.

In normal Jesus fashion, God reminds me of a situation I have been dealing with in which I legit need an answer from God, but instead of pouring out to Him, I have kept it (in part) to myself. I mean I have made mention of pieces of the situation while trying to do it myself. Just like my daughter, I felt that if I asked my Heavenly Father about my true desires, even though I think I have a good argument and reasoning for my desire, He would tell me no. Because this situation is dear to my heart, the thought of Him telling me no just made me afraid of bringing it and leaving it at His feet. When I thought about the mess my daughter made, all because she tried on her own out of fear of rejection, I realized that I didn’t want that to happen in my situation. I don’t want to look back and realize that all I had to do was fully invite Him into my heart and allow Him to work this out for good.

It’s the same for whatever it is you are going through that you are not giving to God. That job, that house, that promotion, that relationship, that trip. Maybe He will say no or maybe He will say yes…maybe even a “not right now.” We won’t know until we ask.

Let’s make a choice to give it all to Jesus, to truly seek Him as it says in His word. We should, according to Philippians 4:6-7, “be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Instead of stressing over what we think we should do, let’s invite God into our decision-making sessions. Let us not reject Him for fear of Him rejecting our desires. God loves us unconditionally and genuinely wants the best for us. He is full of wisdom and guidance, and He can help us by leading us down the path He has for us. Let’s not just say we trust Him. Let’s really put it into action.

Trust him with your desires, your goals, your plans. Give them to Him and let Him lead you.

Be Inspired,

Erica Young