Maneuvers - No. 35
I Love Those
You Love
Have you ever watched someone you love do something you knew wasn’t good for them? Or choose a path that broke your heart? It’s painful, isn’t it, friend?
That’s how a young woman named Monica felt. As a devout Christian, she was devastated to watch her son, the boy she loved more than life itself, walk further and further away from God.
He partied regularly and stole. Slept with women outside of marriage. He even got caught up in a cult.
And all Monica could do was pray. Pray and trust Jesus to fulfill his plans for her son. She knew those divine plans were good. But when would her son walk in them? She could only guess—and surrender.
After 17 years of intense prayer and trusting God, Monica saw her son encounter Jesus and turn away from his sin.
But God’s call didn’t end there. This young man went on to become one of the most influential Christian authors and theologians in church history.
His name? St. Augustine.
Perhaps you’ve heard Monica’s story before and can identify with her pain. Maybe you’re tired of worrying endlessly over the people you love—your children or your spouse or your dear friends.
If so, we invite you to lay your fears at Jesus’ feet today. Unload the heavy burden you’re carrying, and let Holy Spirit’s words wash over you. His words are life to you, friend.
Will you listen?
01.
The Message
“I have the ones you love. I have your heart. I know all your good, beautiful plans for them. The details. The ideas for how you hope things should go. I know you feel fragile because of these dreams you have for them, your desires that have become a part of you. You hold them out to me and fear to fully give them up.
“How do you desire good for the ones you love, you wonder, while surrendering the longings you have for things to go the way you think they should go? How can you trust me, trust that my plans for them are better than what you could ever dream? But listen, I can plant my dreams for them in your heart. Do you want me to? I can share with you my deepest desires, my wildest dreams, my breath that has breathed life into them, my picture of what I see when I look at them, my captivated imagination for all the possibilities that are coming, all the plans I hope come true. Yes? Do you want me to?
“First, let me quiet your heart. Let me slow your breath. (Slow down now. Lean into me.) Let me quiet you with my arms around you. Let me become your resting place. Let me harbor all the dreams, all the hopes, all the plans you have for the ones you love...And then, let me speak to you about you, first.
“To trust me with the ones you love, you need to learn to trust me with your heart. How can you surrender these dreams you have for the ones you love unless you trust me, know me, believe that I am good and faithful and for you? I am for you, child. It is shaky ground to want to control everything. It is a restless heart that wants to stay grasping for what is not in your control. I am the One who dreams for you. I am the One who goes before you. I am the One who guides you. I am the One whose delight for you makes me jump and laugh with joy. Who you love is mine to love. What you dream for them can be our shared dream—if you surrender your dreams for them to me.
“As you walk, holding the hands of the ones you love, see me leading you both. See how I am on the path ahead of you. Don’t try to run ahead. Don’t worry about what direction to go or whether you or they will get lost or make a mistake or lose their way. Worry makes you feel alone—like you are the one who has to have everything figured out. Love them by letting them go—to me. Surrender them to me. Over and over and over again. Surrender your heart. Surrender your heart for them. And I will fill your heart with peace. And your dreams for them will be the ones I dream. And you will find these dreams captivating. And together, as I listen to your heart united with mine, we can watch my dreams become reality.”
02.
Listen
How is your heart feeling right now, friend, after hearing those words? Restless? Fearful? Peaceful? Trusting? Take a moment to write out how you feel to the Lord. Let’s respond to him in a personal prayer.
03.
Think
“Don’t be pulled in different directions or worried about a thing. Be saturated in prayer throughout each day, offering your faith-filled requests before God with overflowing gratitude. Tell him every detail of your life, then God’s wonderful peace that transcends human understanding will guard your heart and mind through Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7, TPT).
1. Who are you worrying about? Whose names came to your mind as Holy Spirit spoke this week?
2. What dreams and hopes (especially for those you love) is Jesus asking you to surrender? What does that look like for you in a practical sense?
3. Look up three Scriptures about prayer or surrender. How do they apply to your specific situation? What is Holy Spirit showing you?
04.
Trust
When someone we love takes a path that fills us with fear, when they don’t walk in what we believe is best for them, it’s easy to let worry take over our hearts.
That fear then creeps into how we think about that person, how we speak to them, and even how we love them.
Do we want fear to dictate our relationships—or faith? Worry—or confidence in God’s ability to accomplish his plans and purposes?
What would happen in our relationships if we allowed God to be in full control? What would change in our hearts if we received his dreams for our loved ones instead of gripping our own?
Beautiful things, friend. Beautiful things can happen.
So today, we invite you to join us in a short exercise. Let’s find a quiet spot where we can be alone with Jesus. Just us and him.
Now, with our Bibles and journals in hand, let’s close our eyes. Breathe in for five seconds. Hold it for three. Breathe out for five seconds. Let’s do this one more time, focusing on Jesus, his goodness, his love, his presence.
In this place of rest, let’s now seek Holy Spirit’s wisdom, asking him to show us his dreams and plans for the ones we love, the ones we’re so worried about, the ones he loves even more than we do.
Pray with us: Lord, what is your heart for this person, your plans and dreams and goals? What have I been missing when I look at them? What do you see that I don’t?
Wait here a moment. What is Holy Spirit showing you? It may not come all at once, but whatever you hear or see, write it down.
Now pray: How can I align with those dreams of yours? What role do you want me to play? How can I love them in a way that lets you do that work in their hearts?
Again, let’s write down what we hear from the Lord.
And one more thing, friend… Can we encourage you to be patient with this process? Holy Spirit may not show you everything at once. You may gain more insight later today or next week or several years from now. But keep asking. Our Jesus is so good and so faithful—he will show you what you need as you seek him.
05.
Pray
Father, thank you for loving the people I love even more than I do. You see their struggles, their choices, and yet you don’t worry. You just keep pursuing them.
Help me align with how you’re working in their lives. Don’t let me stand in the way of what you’re doing or push against the plans you have for them. Your plans are good—far better than any I could come up with. And I trust you to accomplish them.
I surrender my dreams and my goals for this person. I surrender my need for control. Help me make things right where I’ve pushed them too hard. And help me speak up in love where I’ve been too timid.
I love you, Lord. And I trust you. You are my whole world.
In Jesus’ name, amen.
Waving the banner with you,
