Letting Go

One of my yearly Summer projects is going through my kid’s rooms to remove the things they’ve outgrown. Last Summer, there were items my daughter was ready to give away that I wasn’t ready to part with. One was a doll and doll bed. She’s coming to the age where she’s ready to give up her childish toys. I see this change even more this year. She’s pretty much just keeping books and a few art supplies. I’m proud of her because she has found what she really likes to do in her room and is willing to let go of everything else that doesn’t make her happy in that space.

The doll bed she’s finished with, I had kept for her from when I was a child. To be honest, she was ready to get rid of it last year but that was one of the items that I couldn’t bear to let go of. So this year when she mentioned it again, I thought to myself, okay I’ll put it in a black plastic bag and store it in the rafters like I had done for all those years waiting for my own girl to play with it. This item meant a lot to me. But I heard the Lord say that it would mean a lot to someone else too. He is right. I had kept it for my girl. She used it and now it’s time to pass it to someone else’s little girl.

Dear Jesus, It’s so hard letting go of items like that doll bed that has meant so much to me. It’s hard to imagine that the season for my daughter and me to play with it is over. She’s getting rid of all her little girl things. And it just breaks my heart that it is over.

God’s Word to us: There’s still a little girl in her, there always will be. You are her mother. You will always see this side of her. But yes, it’s time to let go. You both need to move on to what’s becoming important to her now. She is growing so she will not stay the same. Find some new things she loves to do. Fill those empty spaces in her life and in her closet. You will be proud of the woman she’s becoming.

“For everything there is a season,
    a time for every activity under heaven.
A time to keep and a time to throw away.”

My Heart’s Cry was sharing my grieving heart with God. I was grieving the process of letting go of my daughter’s childhood. I had waited so long for her to arrive and kept some family items just for her. It was such a joy to see her use the bed for her dolls and stuffed animals. But when she grew out of them, I wasn’t ready for it.

Letting go is such a huge part of parenting. When God gives you a baby, it’s a 24/7 job. The baby can’t do anything on it’s own; but as parents we are just so excited about the amazing gift God has blessed us with. Now with my daughter, we are past the halfway point. She’s moving away from her childhood and walking towards adulthood. I need to be okay with that.  I need to be open to let her grow at whatever age and whatever stage she goes through.

Is there something you need to let go? Has God been tugging on your heart lately? It took me another whole year to realize the doll items were not being used. My daughter was waiting for me to come to grips with my own feelings. Now this year she will have space for something new. She’s not waiting on mom anymore.

Seasons change. We have to be willing to change with them. Letting go is hard.

“But forget all that—
    it is nothing compared to what I am going to do.
 For I am about to do something new.
    See, I have already begun!
Do you not see it?”

I love the hope we have in God. He has good things for us. He has crafted our future. My daughter may be maturing, but that’s a good thing. We will get to experience things when she’s in her teens that we couldn’t when she was a little girl.

So you see, letting go makes room for what God wants to do that is new. We just need to be brave enough to let go of the old things. This is part of walking humbly with our God.

Would you consider blessing me today by liking or commenting? Remember, you see me and read “My Heart’s Cry” on these blogs but I can’t see you. Sometimes I feel like these blogs are just blown to the wind like the seeds of a flower. I never know where they land, never knowing if they are helpful and are planted in other people’s lives. So please, in whatever way you choose, reach out to me. I’d really appreciate it.

Blessings to you.

Kim

Isaiah 43:18-19 NLT
Ecclesiastes 3:1,6 NLT