In order to "let go" there, by implication, must have been an "attachment" of some sorts somewhere. We become attached to so many different people, pets, things and even our own selves. Last Friday my dog Buddy was no longer able to get up. He was 12 and had lived a good life. His love for people was immense and his idiosyncrasies were many. We first found Buddy when he was about 2 at a grocery store while on vacation. We found his picture anyway. We met him and immediately fell in love with the over stimulated and excited animal. The first attachment. There were to be many more attachments over the next 10 plus years. With each new attachment there was a need to let an old one be replaced. That's the way it is with us. There is a difference with our human attachments but there are attachments there as well. I have 7 children. Each I have an attachment with. I love them. They are unique individuals and successful. During their growing years I was required to train them, encourage them, lead them and be an example to them. All of that so that I could, over those same years, let go of attachments they no longer needed. Neither did I.
The Bible talks about putting away the old things for the new. There are steps to climb in your and my faith that require attachments and the ability to let go. We, like babies, need milk to begin our lives. We need transition food to grow and mature and as adults are requiring food of substance in order to do what we are to do. I've come to realize that with all the growth we do have in our Spiritual lives, others may not recognize that growth in me. That doesn't mean that growth hasn't taken place. So, to whom does the kudos go for seeing that growth; that attachment and letting go that leads to maturity? The Bible says that God is aware of every thought, deed and action before we were ever born. He created us in our mothers womb and developed every aspect of who we are. I know what you may be thinking. What about the impaired, disabled, and infirm infants. Well, that's where the attachment becomes an important issue. We are capable of giving to those like us. We need to be capable of giving to all. That includes attachment. Enjoying God's creation in each other is a good thing no matter the details.
Buddy was in a lot of pain these last few months to a year. Medication helped for a while and so did changing our routines. Walks became slower, sleeping increased, and the glimmer of youth in his eyes changed with his age. That's the way it happens to us as well. We get old. Sometimes life is gracious to us and we actually are blessed to be able to live a long life. Long life is denied to so many. Just where is our thankfulness? Somewhere along the line our lives hit an intersection where we were confronted with cross traffic. That cross traffic caused us to ponder areas of our life we had previously not been able to understand. When I was first told about Jesus I was a teenager who knew everything. Anyone smiling? As an adult when I met Jesus I was ready for the intersection. I changed and so did most everything in my world. Except my appetite for really good food! There was the "letting go" of "attachments" and the new improved updated version put in place.
It's obvious to those who know me that my life hasn't always rung true of the knowledge that I have. I've, like you, failed to do what I should have done and have done what I should not have done. I've caused grief for others as well as happiness. I could have let all those wrong choices take hold of my life. But, God in all his grace has made a way for me to let go of bad attachments and I have taken advantage of that grace many times. People have come and gone in my life even as I have come and gone in theirs. Sometimes it's been my choice and sometimes not. However, the story of my life and yours has continued on. Buddy was put to sleep in the most of humane ways at 6 PM on Friday evening and buried by the garden where he can survey his kingdom. This is an attachment that is difficult to let go of. Other deaths of family and friends has been equally or more difficult as well. We don't want those in our lives to go away. But they, as we, must one day. Being able to let go of Jesus, the disciples knew that they would go through the transition to being the men of God that Jesus had taught them to be. That's the key! Knowing what Buddy has taught me is important in the letting go. My memories will forever be attachments that I won't let go.
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