Let go!
“Let
go! Throw your head back and lift with your legs at the top of the
arc.”
Hannah,
spry and fearless, did as instructed when launched from the tiny perch
cut into the nearly vertical cliff. Secure in her climbing harness
and hooked onto the rope, she flipped upside down, soaring over the
jungled canyon one hundred feet below. She was gleeful despite the
fact she held onto nothing. Legs extended, arms outstretched, peering
at the ground as it rushed beneath her, she flew falcon-like through
the air. Her teammates watched from the steep hillside, amazed at her
prowess, agility, and strength. When Hannah dismounted, it was with
bubbling-over joy.
And
then came JoAnna. This was not her first trip along the zip line
course. However, when it came to the swing in the dense Costa Rican
jungle, she denied herself the experience on each of her prior
adventures. Only now, surrounded by a team of young women urging her
on, did she relent. She survived her fright and flight, though not
with the unfettered style and grace of Hannah. JoAnna held on tight,
knuckles white and fingers cramping. When JoAnna dismounted, it was
only with great relief.
Both
these women started the challenge with the same tools: secured,
quadruple-checked harnesses. Both these women had the same outcome:
survival with no injury. But what about their perception of
experience? Hannah relished leaving the cliff. She embraced letting
go. She sought the exhilaration tumbling through the air brought her.
JoAnna, on the other hand, let the fear deprive her of flightful
fancy. She chose not to trust the safety measures and allow
herself complete joy.
God
sometimes asks us to take a flying leap. Though He promises His
control, and despite the assurance of safety, we refuse to let go.
Like JoAnna, we needlessly clutch our own insecurities, missing the
joy of the journey.
“You
will be secure, because there is hope; you will look about you and take your rest in safety.”
Proverbs
11:18 (NIV)
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