Stuck...

One of my favorite childhood books is "Where the Red Fern Grows". It's a story about animals, growing up, love, and loss. A young boy wants to learn to coon hunt with his dogs. First he goes on a journey to raise money and purchase his pups and then he sets about training them as hunters. In order to do so he needs a coon hide for them to chase. His wise grandpa suggests a deceptively simple trap: a wooden box with an opening just large enough for a coon stick his hand through with some shiny metal 'bait' inside. The boy is skeptical, all the coon would need to do is let go of his metal prize and he'd be able to remove his hand. Grandpa proves right when he traps his first coon using this method.

I'm more like that simple raccoon than I'd like to admit. I often find myself stuck simply because I refuse to let go. Sometimes I'm holding on to something that I truly believe is important, but all too often I'm holding on to something that's just, well stuff. All that holding on can definitely hold me back.

Jesus spoke about this several times during his ministry, a few of my favorites are the ninth chapter of Luke and the parable of the rich young man. My prayer today is a simple one...

Lord please help me to let go of anything which is holding back. In your name, I pray. Amen