One of the things I love about my Choose Joy Adventure is that it reminds me life with God is not a straight path — it’s a journey. Sometimes it feels like a peaceful walk along the shore… and other times it feels like standing at the edge of the water, holding something I worked hard to catch, knowing God is asking me to release it.
“Catch and release” is a phrase often used in fishing. There are places and times where, after you catch a fish, you are required to release it back into the water. The purpose is growth. The fish population grows stronger because not every catch is kept.
Catch means to secure something.
Release means to set it free.
If I’m honest, releasing is hard — especially after I’ve worked so hard to catch something. Just like fishing, there are seasons of waiting in life. Seasons where I’ve stood still for a long time, watching, hoping, praying, waiting to feel that little nibble that tells me something is finally happening.
Waiting for the moment I can set the hook.
Waiting to reel in the big one.
Waiting for the breakthrough I prayed for.
And then… sometimes God asks me to let it go.
I have had to release jobs I worked hard to achieve.
Release long-time friendships because life has changed.
Release goals because of health struggles.
Release expectations because life didn’t turn out the way I thought it would.
In those moments, it didn’t feel like an adventure.
It felt like a loss.
It felt like failure.
It felt like I had done something wrong.
But the more I walk this Choose Joy journey, the more I am learning something powerful:
God is not trying to take from me —He is growing me.
Psalm 55:22 (NIV) says,
“Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you;
He will never let the righteous be shaken.”
To cast means to release.
Sometimes the most courageous step in the adventure is not holding tighter…it’s letting go.
There are two things we can count on in life:
God never changes, and life always will.
Change is inevitable.
Growth is intentional.
~ Glenda Cloud
So the question becomes —
Will I fight the change…or will I grow through it?
On this Choose Joy Adventure, I am learning there is a difference between giving up and letting go.
Giving up says,
“I lost.”
Letting go says,
“God has something more.”
Just like releasing the fish so it can grow, sometimes God asks me to release what I thought I needed… so He can grow something deeper in me.
I am not defeated.
I am being developed.
I can look back and be thankful for the seasons where I caught something wonderful — the job, the friendship, the opportunity, the dream. Those were real gifts.
But I am also learning to trust that when God asks me to release something, it is because the adventure is not over yet.
Through the eyes of faith, I can say yes to the next step, even when I don’t understand it.
2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV) reminds us,
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.
The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
New seasons require open hands.
And the greatest example of release is this —
God released His Son for us.
Because of Jesus, we have the freedom to release fear, doubt, disappointment, and regret.
So if you find yourself holding something today that God is asking you to release…you are not failing.
Because of Jesus, we can choose joy even when life changes.
Because of Jesus, every ending can become the beginning of a new adventure.
You are stepping deeper into the journey.
My friend, in life’s adventures, you will be asked to trust the One who sees the whole river, not just the line in your hand.
Catch.
Release.
Trust.
Grow.
Choose Joy.
With love and joy,
Laura
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