Check Your Grip
- The Narrow Path
- Nov 18, 2022
- 3 min read
No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it (Hebrews 12:11, NIV).
A good friend of mine recently took a little tumble and ended up with a broken wrist. After spending three weeks in a hard cast, she was elated to hear that they would be replacing it with a removable, protective splint. If you’ve ever had to spend any time in a cast, you know the amazing feeling that comes when you finally get to have it removed!
While having the cast removed has its benefits, it also reveals the setbacks that come with having a joint totally immobilized. When someone isn’t able to move their wrist and hand for several weeks, removal of the cast brings soreness, stiffness, and most of all, weakness with gripping.
I visited with her one evening recently, and she told me about her first couple of visits to a hand specialist who would be helping her regain her mobility and strength. She pulled out some hand putty, balled it up, and began the difficult task of trying to manipulate it in the palm of her hand. Because of the broken bone and subsequent immobilization, her grip that was once quite strong was now very weak.
As I sat there, I felt the Holy Spirit speak to my heart: How often does God have to break us in order to loosen our grip on the things He doesn’t want for us?
When I apply this question to my life, I am able to immediately look back, specifically over the last five to six years of my life, and see areas where the Lord had to break me. Over the course of my life, I had allowed myself to cling to and place priority on worldly things over heavenly things.
Pursuing perfection > Pursuing progress Focusing on religion > Focusing on my relationship with Jesus Finding my identity in others > Finding my identity in Christ Seeking love through people-pleasing > Knowing I am fully loved in Christ Allowing grumbling to dominate my day > Choosing gratitude
Thankfully, the Lord loves me enough to break me. It was the breaking of me that led me to open my heart to Him and step into a process of healing, which was incredibly difficult but also the most important and best decision of my life.
Just as my friend has been working through a physical process of healing, I committed myself to emotional and spiritual healing that allowed the Lord to reveal areas where I needed to check my grip. By participating in my strengthening exercises of Christian counseling, prayer, and spending time in The Word of God, the Lord began to strengthen my grip on heavenly things.
Pursuing progress > Pursuing perfection Focusing on my relationship with Jesus > Focusing on religion Finding my identity in Christ > Finding my identity in others Knowing I am fully loved in Christ > Seeking love through people-pleasing Choosing gratitude > Allowing grumbling to dominate my day
My prayer is that you will spend a few quiet moments with Jesus today and check your grip. Ask him to reveal areas in your life where you’ve begun to prioritize worldly things over heavenly ones. Hebrews 12:11 says: No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Though the breaking of something is never enjoyable at the time, the Lord will strengthen you, and the process will produce immeasurable growth and healing in ways that will change your life.
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