Letting Go Lent Meditation by Michael Ankerich
Letting go is hard work, my friends.
To me, letting go means choosing to free ourselves from a loss, grievance, or life transition that leaves us paralyzed with grief, uncertainty, anxiety, and chaos.
My first intentional act of letting go came when I was just over 40 after a beloved faith community adopted resolutions that demonstrated gay Christians were not completely welcome among them. In the middle of despair, I made a heartbreaking decision to let go of that spiritual family. God opened my eyes to St. Thomas.
As I get older, I find that I am faced with more frequent opportunities to let go. The deaths of my closest family members since 2015 have forced me to let go of the roots that were there from the beginning of my life. COVID, Charlie’s cancer scare, and the deaths of close friends pushed me into letting go of the idea that life is guaranteed and to accept the fact that life is instead a fragile gift from God.
Most recently, the sudden and premature loss of my career and livelihood led me to reevaluate my professional identity and the uncertain path before me.
Transitions are inevitable. How we navigate life’s uncertainties is up to us. These unsettling times provide opportunities of letting go. We are faced with the decision to either remain in our broken and anxious conditions or to free ourselves with pleas to God to show us how to go forward.
God’s promise is to never leave or forsake us. Lean on our Lord to help you let go of pain from losses you are experiencing.
My first intentional act of letting go came when I was just over 40 after a beloved faith community adopted resolutions that demonstrated gay Christians were not completely welcome among them. In the middle of despair, I made a heartbreaking decision to let go of that spiritual family. God opened my eyes to St. Thomas.
As I get older, I find that I am faced with more frequent opportunities to let go. The deaths of my closest family members since 2015 have forced me to let go of the roots that were there from the beginning of my life. COVID, Charlie’s cancer scare, and the deaths of close friends pushed me into letting go of the idea that life is guaranteed and to accept the fact that life is instead a fragile gift from God.
Most recently, the sudden and premature loss of my career and livelihood led me to reevaluate my professional identity and the uncertain path before me.
Transitions are inevitable. How we navigate life’s uncertainties is up to us. These unsettling times provide opportunities of letting go. We are faced with the decision to either remain in our broken and anxious conditions or to free ourselves with pleas to God to show us how to go forward.
God’s promise is to never leave or forsake us. Lean on our Lord to help you let go of pain from losses you are experiencing.
- Michael G. Ankerich
Tags: Voices
