What it looks like to "let go, let God"

I have often wondered how to apply the verses and thoughts around "don't worry about anything but give it God", "just let go and let God". These things sound great and often times I have prayed and prayed these thoughts just to carry around my stress and anxiety. I didn't know what it meant or looked like to apply this to my life.

This year I have really been on a growing journey- growing in faith, prayer, bible study, and my career.

I am spending more time with God before starting my day.

My daily routine starts with making my husband and son breakfast and lunches (my oldest son eats at school while my youngest is SUPER picky, so I make his lunch), then Coffee and Jesus time starts with reading the daily office and my morning prayers.

My morning prayers are not just "Thank you God for today, take care of everyone I love and here is a list of the things I need...amen". I will have to admit in the past my prayers have been more of this due to rushing around for work and things that tied me to time constraints. Maybe that's why I have struggled with my prayer life .

My morning prayers are now writing out any praises, writing out the things I need God to take care of because I can't and it only causes me stress and anxiety, then writing out bible verses that contain the promises of God.

Then I pray.

I start by praising God and thanking Him, I pray over my boys (my hubby is one of my boys...lol), Then I pray over the things I wrote out and the verses that contain the promises of God.

From here I pray for God to help me with my part of those promises. See...when God gives a promise there is usually a part for us/me to do as well. If you do this then this will happen.

John 15: 17-18

"If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you want and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this that you produce much fruit and be my disciple."

In this verse it says "ask whatever you want and it will be done for you", this sounds great right?

I have used this verse in my prayers many times and God did not give me what I wanted. In fact sometimes it seemed that things got even harder and the opposite outcome would happen.

I wasn't using the rest of the verse..."If you remain in me and my words in you"....Okay, I feel like I'm okay with that. I'm not perfect and mess up everyday but I try to be a kind person.

But then there is the part that comes after "and it will be done"...the part that says "My Father is glorified by this....produce much fruit and be my disciple". HHHMMMM....got me there....am I producing fruit? Am I being a disciple? Who have I shown God's love to this week? or been a witness too?

That's the part I am supposed to do in order for God to do His part.

Now in my prayers I when I pray this verse over all of the things that I want to stress over, I also pray for God to show me the work He has for me today and how He can use me to produce fruit and be a disciple for Him today.

There are a couple of things going on here.

Yes....I want God to provide all of these things that I need Him to take care of,

But, God wants His outcome as well, which is for me to be a disciple making disciples and loving on other people.

Pair this verse with the verse that says "Seek first the Kingdom of God" and it is clear on how to be a success.

Seek God, produce fruit, be a disciple, Love God, and love others then all of these things will be added to you, all the desires of your heart will be done, whatever you ask will be given. Only better, the desires of my heart will become the desires God wants for me.

Things of this world will pass away but the Kingdom of God is forever! So what is of more benefit? Being a disciple or using God to get what I want for temporary pleasures?

God doesn't want me miserable by no stretch of the means, He just wants me to prioritize Him over temporal things.

Once I got to a place in my life I could do this, now I can really live for Him, be successful in my assignment and really understand what it means to "let go and let God".

I started this off by saying I've never really known what it means to actually apply this thought. I have been intentionally putting this into practice this week and here is what I have come to understand.

Does "letting go and letting God" mean that I don't actively work on my business and just let God make the clients just fall out of the sky? Nope....because God doesn't like laziness and I must put forth my efforts as well...I must continue learning and growing in my niche.

Does this mean I put forth my all my efforts, stress and worry about where the clients are coming from and try to force clients my way? Also no...."do not be anxious about anything".

What does this mean? Well, for me this past weekend anyway it meant working...it meant doing the things I know to do. It meant scheduling an open house on a house I knew would be a popular listing, walking the neighborhood and handing out flyers, posting about it on my social media.

I have done many many open houses with no one to show up.

All week long I prayed for God to show me how I could work for Him and for Him to bless the work I put into my business.

I told God I'm not going to worry or stress where my next clients are coming from but I'm going to do the things I know to do, asked God for wisdom on things I can do to enhance my business and then let God do what God does.

I'll do what I can do and God, you do what you do.

And guess what yall???? I had 3 couples walk through the open house, one couple I actually knew, we talked all day Saturday and Sunday about numbers. Then guess what?? WE ARE UNDER CONTRACT!

And that people...is what I now believe what it means to apply "let go and let God". We do what we can do and let God do what God does, seek first His Kingdom to rule and reign in our lives, produce fruit and make disciples, love God and love others.

When we live our lives by God's principals we cannot fail.