From the desk of Pastor Ben
Letting Go — By LeAnne Martin

She checked the basket again and again for any signs of damage or weakness. Finding none, she carefully tucked him into the basket, making sure he was swaddled snugly. Then she did the unthinkable — something only a desperate mother could do — and put the basket that held her baby into the river. “Follow it, Miriam. You know what to do.” The young girl obeyed, and the baby landed in the arms of the bathing princess, who agreed to Miriam’s suggestion: he could be nursed by a Hebrew woman (his mother) until he was old enough to live with the princess as her son. Just as God had planned.
Where did Moses’ mother get the strength to put her son into the crocodile-infested Nile? Only from the Lord. If she held onto Moses any longer, he would be discovered and killed because of Pharaoh’s brutal new law against Hebrew baby boys. Moses’ mother loved her son dearly, but she also trusted God with him. No doubt the Lord comforted her, perhaps assured her He had a special plan for Moses. So, for the short while that she nursed him, she raised Moses in God’s ways, and then she let him go again — this time for good, to a life without her.

Elizabeth had waited so long for a child, enduring years of judgment and ostracizing because of her barrenness. She and her husband, Zechariah, a priest in the temple, were old and had likely given up the dream of parenthood. Until the angel Gabriel gave Zechariah the good news: Elizabeth would bear a son.
John would be the first biblical prophet to speak for God in 400 years. He would lay the groundwork for the Messiah’s ministry, calling the people to repent. He would even baptize the Son of God; what greater honor could there be? But Elizabeth knew only that her baby was God’s gift, and that he was called out by God. Despite her great love for John, she trusted God with him and, along with Zechariah, she raised John in God’s ways. And then she let him go.

Though very young, Mary, Jesus’ mother, had a strong faith and a humble spirit; she believed god would do what He said, and she said yes to Him. Luke 2 says that after her Son was born, she stored up things in her heart: the shepherd’s visit, Jesus’ teaching in the temple. As Jesus matured, she likely had a long list of treasured and troublesome memories of Him. She knew He would be the great Messiah but did not know what that would require of Him or of her. She trusted God, and with Joseph, she raised Jesus in God’s ways. And then she let Him go.

These three mothers’ stories make me ask myself: do I trust God with my kids? As they approach their teenage years, the unknown bears down upon me some days: Will they . . . ? What if . . . ? How about . . . ? These mothers didn’t know what the future held for their children either. Did they sometimes find themselves wavering or worrying or fearful? Perhaps, but Scripture shows us that they believed God was in control and that He was faithful. They knew that their children were His anyway. So do I.

I’m asking God right now, for wisdom to consistently raise my kids in His ways and for strength to let them go in the big and little moments, even as I acknowledge that they are already in His hands. I’m asking for a double portion of trust that His plan for them, whatever it might be, is for their good. Now and always, my deep desire is that the Lord be glorified in my life as their parent — and, also, in their life as His child.
Whether you’re a mother or a father, or neither one, the process of letting go and trusting God is something that each of us is called to do over and over again in our lives. It can seem scary sometimes, and trying to control things certainly comes more natural to us, but peace and security are only found in submitting our plans to God and allowing His plan to unfold in the best possible way.