And there arose a sharp disagreement, so that they separated from each other. Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and departed, having been commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord.
Acts 15:39-40 (ESV)
Lord Jesus, there’s a theme that is running through my life right now specifically as it pertains to holding on to people. I confess that it’s very difficult to let people go. It’s hard when folks You have poured your life into, who have made a difference in your life, and you believe you’ve made a difference in theirs, depart. When the time comes to separate, whether it’s amiable or under less than ideal terms, through life circumstances or even being called home to You, there is this tremendous sense of loss. And because of this, there is this tendency that I have to try to hold on. And I know that’s wrong; however, I can’t seem to help myself. Yet this I know for certain: it’s You that brings individuals into my life; and it’s You that takes them out.
So today, I pray, Lord, that You would help me to hold on to the people in my life loosely. I’m not saying help me to keep them at arms length or to distance me from them. Instead I want to see them as You do, accepting that You are bringing them into my life only for a season in order bless both me and them, to bring us closer to you, and to enable us to accomplish Your will in our lives. Help me to understand that it’s not just for the joy they bring nor the assistance they lend, or even the strength that I draw upon from them. It is because You are using us collectively to make us better, to shape us into the persons You have created us to be, and to purge from us all that is not like You. It’s about advancing Your Kingdom. And all this to Your glory!
So Lord, I submit to Your will today. I surrender all of my relationships to You. Continue to open my eyes to the work You are doing with us and between us. Continue to bring into my life whom You determine will make me better, and remove those whose work You have deemed complete. And please calm and comfort my spirit, giving me the grace to accept Your judgement. In Your Name I pray. Amen.