As I hung up from our weekly Master’sMind business owners’ call, I reflected on the beauty and challenge of living and leading in our various places of work. During the call, one of the owners mentioned the pressures and stresses he was facing in his business that morning. Similar sentiments echoed from others.
I felt the pain and joy of living and working in a world that is broken and dark at times, beautiful and glorious at the same time.
Recently I have been reflecting on the advent of Christ that we celebrate at Christmas. As I do, I am so very grateful that Jesus came to be the light who releases us from the darkness of our own hearts, who bears the weight of our pain, suffering, and anxieties, who heals and brings wholeness (Isaiah 53:4-6). I am so grateful that, in the midst of the storms and shadows brought on by pressure, stress, anxiety, and pain, we have Light that is hope and peace.
Jesus’s relative Zechariah declared that Jesus would be a
What can we do in darkness and shadows? We have to come to the light. In response to the sentiments expressed on the call, my good friend and partner, Darren shared a prayer of Release by Roy Lessin, co-founder and writer with Dayspring that invites the Light of Christ to do its work in our hearts:
"Heavenly Father, I RELEASE to you the burdens I have been carrying, burdens that You never meant for me to carry. I CAST all my cares upon You -- all my worries, all my fears. You have told me to not be anxious about anything, but rather to bring everything to You in prayer with thankfulness.
Father, CALM my restless spirit, QUIET my anxious heart, STILL my troubling thoughts with the assurance that You are in control. I LET GO of my grip upon the things I have been hanging onto, with opened hands I come to You. I RELEASE to Your will all that I am trying to manipulate; I RELEASE to Your authority all that I am trying to control; I RELEASE to Your timing all that I have been striving to make happen.
I THANK YOU for Your promise to SUSTAIN me, PRESERVE me, and GUARD all that I have entrusted to Your keeping. PROTECT my heart and mind with Your peace, the peace that passes all understanding. Father, may Your will be done in my life, in Your time, and in Your way."
Roy Lessin
A Deliberate Application
Where are you feeling the shadows and weight of carrying more care than you were meant to?
What are you having difficulty entrusting to God and releasing to His hands? Why do you think that is?
As you sense God prompting you, pause, confess, and release the things you are striving for-trying to do in your own effort. You may want to pray the Release poem aloud and be specific about the burdens, cares, fears, and worries you want to release.
Who may God be asking you to share this post with? Who could use some encouragement and release?
