Relinquish All to God

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”   (Phil. 4:6)

Does that word, RELINQUISH, sound ominous to you?  It’s difficult to RELINQUISH anything…money, schedules, dreams, plans, loved ones...GIVING IT UP!  It’s just plain hard to do! Relinquishing the difficult circumstances of life is probably our biggest challenge.  How many times have I said, “Lord, I give it all up to You!”  “Lord, I lay it all at Your feet.”  “Lord, I don’t want to hold onto this any longer.”  “Lord, I’m just not going to worry anymore.”  “Lord, I give you the right to be the Lord of my life - to bring into it or take out of it anything you desire.” However, too often, I take back those things I thought I’d relinquished to Him.

I recently heard an apt word picture of what it means to relinquish something completely!  It would be like tipping a glass full of water and pouring it all into the sand.  It would be impossible to take back the water. That’s a great picture to me of exactly what I need to be doing with those things that trouble me, or disappoint me, or that hurt me, or that cause me anxiety.  I need to pour them out completely before the One Who loves me most and best; Who ALONE can resolve any concern; Who ALONE already has a perfect plan for me AND my troubles; Who ALONE has promised He will never leave me or forsake me.  God is telling us, in Philippians 4:6, to RELINQUISH our concerns to Him: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”