What Are You Holding Onto?

What are you holding onto?

Larry Burkett said, “When we surrender every area of our lives – including our finances – to God, then we’re free to trust Him to meet our needs, but if we’d rather hold tightly to those things which we possess, then we find ourselves in bondage to those very things.” Christ’s willingness to sacrifice on behalf of others seems far beyond our reach. We want to be like Him, but to do so means crossing the hurdle of surrendering everything to God. Satan hates this and distracts us with thoughts of things we might lose. He tempts us with things of this world to prevent us from experiencing the joy Christ sets before us. He tries to convince us to hold on to our money, our things, our whatevers.

The truth is, everything belongs to God. Our challenge is to live in obedience to Christ. Hebrews 11 lists the heroes of the faith – those who surrendered everything. Chapter 12 says, “Therefore, since we’re surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”

As you begin this new year, write down a list of all the things that are holding you back from surrendering everything over to the Lord. Resist the devil, and throw off everything that hinders you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Fix your eyes on Jesus. He’ll give you the strength to surrender anything you’re still holding on to. Just ask Him.

And if you’re starting this year with painful credit card debt, let Christian Credit Counselors help. They can create a debt management plan specifically for you. For more information call the Crown Helpline at 800-722-1976 or visit online at crown.org/ccc.