Walking through the Water and Not on it
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I was scrolling through Facebook last week and I saw a beautiful fall picture with leaves collected in open hands. The quote read, “The trees are about to show us how lovely it is to let things go.” Somehow, that spoke to me, right at that time, at this season, right in this place in my life. Letting go is usually held in a negative light: having to let go of a loved one as they pass away, let go of a dream that may not come to fruition, letting go of a job or position you had hoped to get. This message was saying the opposite. It was in fact, ’lovely’, to let things go.
That got me contemplating the divine and the example of Jesus in our world. Jesus let go all the time. He had few worldly goods of which to speak, let go of all worldly comforts during his forty days in the desert, and ultimately, letting go, obediently as he called out to God on the cross in desperation. Sometimes, God may be calling you to let things go in your own life, within a positive context. Is God possibly calling you to let go of resentments, past hurts or anger, an unhealthy attachment to material goods, a habitual sin? Isaiah 43:18-19 tells us, “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.”
It can be incredibly hard to 'forget the former things' and not to 'dwell on the past'. Even after the sacrament of reconciliation, I may still want to dwell on that past situation. We are called to drink from the 'streams in the wasteland'. Sin can make us feel as we are living in a wasteland. I am workimg to consciously move forward, to let those things go in my own life and need to be shed away and move forward to the new paths that God has laid for me.
I encourage you, in the coming season of fall, as you may catch the glimpse of a falling leaf, to remember that “the trees are showing us how lovely it is to let things go”. Ask Jesus to help you and rest in the act of letting go.
Carmen Moore has a passion for many things including her Catholic faith/Catholic education, autism, supporting families in navigating educational/familial goals and learning at the same time. With a vast background in formalized education, Carmen has enjoyed a career as a classroom teacher, school principal, and teacher coach supporting students with specialized needs that has spanned decades. However, her vocation as a wife and mother is her greatest passion and is living that out with laughter, love and prayer as they face what life brings.
Carmen is also a freelance writer and has contributed to many online and print publications (faith related and otherwise) and was a regular blogger for her local Parish. Her passion extends to public speaking and she has shared her story with many audiences. She was chosen to create short video clips for Redemptorist TV which are featured in her website as well at CMooreinEducation that are based on personal experiences and faith reflections.
With a formal education that includes a Masters in Religious Education (MRE) as well as being a committed Catholic for her entire life, her focus on being joyful (even when things go sideways...) has helped her to share her insights by writing, speaking and trying to live that message. Being a parent of a child with 'different abilities' who lives his life in 'joy mode' most of his life, has inspired her to live each new day with a fresh perspective. She is honored to be able to share some insights on Catholic 365. God is good...all the time!
