In Order to Grow, You Must Let Go

Read time: 8 mins

“God addressed Samuel: “So, how long are you going to mope over Saul? You know I’ve rejected him as king over Israel. Fill your flask with anointing oil and get going. I’m sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I’ve spotted the very king I want among his sons.”

‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭16‬:‭1‬ ‭MSG‬‬

Recently, I've been getting something pretty strange on my social media feeds and I'm asking that you don't judge me for it. Is this a safe place? You promise? 

Ok well, lately I’ve been getting a lot of lobster videos. Yes, my feed has been filled with videos about lobsters. I’ve been learning facts as people catch lobsters and even following as they buy them from the store and raise them. I know, I know it's strange. But you said you wouldn’t judge me lol. My feed has been filled with lobster videos. And it might sound even crazier but God has been trying to speak to me through those lobster videos. 

I’ve learned something about lobsters that I believe God wants us to learn in our lives. You see what's interesting about these aquatic crustaceans is that in order for them to grow, they have to let go. You must understand that lobsters are arthropods which means they have an exoskeleton. Essentially their bones are on the outside instead of the inside. This means that in order to grow, they must go through molting processes. In order to keep progressing and thriving, they must let go of the things in the past that used to serve them, in order to make room for something new. Oh, I wish I had a church in here. They must let go of some of the things that served, sustained and even protected them in the past in order to move into their future. And I wish I had 5 people reading this that recognized that you too are like a lobster. No, I'm not calling you a cockroach of the sea or saying you’re an oversized insect or overpriced peasant food. No, I'm saying that if you wish to experience, possess and grow into all God has for you, you too must shed some things. You have to let go in order to grow.

In this story, Samuel and the Israelites were like a lobster. Saul had served his purpose. Having a king was something they worked for and were proud of but it was time for something new. They had to let go of their Saul to make room for their David.  And many of us find ourselves at the same fork in the road. God is calling us to growth but we have to make the decision as to if we will stay with the comfort of where we were or move with God by faith into where He wants us to be. 

Many of us know we are overdue for growth but are having trouble letting go of yesterday. 

Now we must remember how we got here in this story. While we often look at the Israelites in hindsight and give them grief for asking for a king, we must remember that they asked for a king for a logical reason. Let’s put ourselves in their shoes. As they populated the promised land, God would raise up judges to recuse them from harm and lead them forward. This system worked until corrupt judges like Samuel’s sons came into office. The Bible says that Samuel’s sons were greedy and perverted justice. They were dangerous and oppressive leaders. So the elders of Israel got together and asked for a new leader because of the issues with their current ones. And God didn't just allow it, He told Samuel to listen to them and He even picked the new king himself! The Bible says that God sets up kings and tears them down. And regardless of the arguments about Israel trying to be like others or failing to fully trust or rushing and rejecting God’s timing, God allowed and selected Saul for this moment. Saul was chosen on purpose for purpose and he would have been hard to let go of. In the eyes of the people, he was a savior. He was a good king. 

But just because God allowed Saul to lead and bring success for a time in their development, didn't mean his leadership was meant to be a permanent resting place. Just because God lets it happen for a time doesn’t mean it is the forever ideal. God is constantly seeking to grow us and mature us. Christianity is antithetical to stagnation. A call to follow Christ is a call to constant growth. 

Now as Christian’s we must understand this principle. The gospel is the good news that we have been saved not of our own work or action but as a free gift allotted to us before we knew we needed it. But from this place of being saved, we have been implanted with a seed of the Holy Spirit that will propagate fruit in us. Fruit doesn’t save you but fruit comes as a result of being saved. Your growth doesn’t save you but if you accept Jesus’ free gift of salvation you will be enrolled in a curriculum of growth. As you follow Christ, your life will change. Christianity is a movement. It’s a progression. We have been predestined and justified past tense but we are being sanctified present tense. While you have been given the free gift of salvation and have been wrapped and covered in Christ’s robe of righteousness, there is still a lifetime long sanctification process that we are all undergoing. And this life long sanctification means that we are always under a process of growth. 

And this is why I think we can learn from lobsters in our Christian walk because while humans stop growing after they reach adulthood, lobsters continue to grow and molt through their entire lifetime. Our growth process isn’t to slow or stop. It doesn’t matter how old, accomplished, or acclaimed you are. God always has more growth for you. Many of us fail to realize this principle and it causes us to settle in the places and stages God only called us to for a season. This is why we see people getting so stuck in what God did or how He moved in the past, that they can’t connect with what He is doing in the present and future. God loves you so much that He doesn’t want you to stop short of all He has for you. Yes, He has made a way. Yes, He opened doors. But even though it was amazing, there is still more. This is a five course meal and you’re just on the appetizers. He said the latter years will be better than the former. God worked in the past and that should be celebrated. But don’t settle for anything below the full revelation of His power that God wants to give you. Don’t miss out on all He has for you. 

Isaiah 43:14-19 reminds us that God worked immensely in the past but it is nothing compared to what He wants to do in the future and I don't want to miss out because I'm too stuck on yesterday. 

 We are to be content but not confined. That means that we can find safety and security in our current but never be so stagnant that God cannot bring us to more. We can find purpose in the seasons God allows but not always permanence. Just because He blessed Joseph in Egypt didn't mean He wouldn’t call His descendant, Moses, to the promised land. Always be prepared to move forward, no matter how much God worked in the past stages of life. 

Now there are a few understandable reasons why we sometimes push against and reject God’s call to growth. Growth is hard. Letting go is uncomfortable. But anything God calls us to is for our good. Here are some reasons God allows these types of growth moments.

God thrives when we are dependent. I want you to know that you are the weak link in this equation. That means that if you want success, you need more of Jesus and less of you. When you take your hands off the wheel, God has the most room to work. That’s why Paul says God's strength is made perfect in his weakness. And because God knows this, He sets up the best conditions for your success. I want you to know that because God wants you to succeed, He will always give you reason to lean on Him over your own understanding. God will rarely give you all the ability to do things on your own. He always leaves space for you to allow Him in. That’s where you find success. 

There will always be a variable for you to trust Him in. Sometimes like with Gideon, He will give you the battle without an army so that you can trust Him to fight. Sometimes like Joseph He will give you the dream but no support system so that you have to trust Him to walk through it with you. Sometimes like Abraham He will tell you to get up and go without outlining a path or stopping point so that you can lean not on to your own understanding and allow Him to direct your path. He will give the destination but not outline the journey so that you can trust Him for directions. We see this here. Samuel is told to get rid of Saul without knowing who to replace him with. Samuel doesn’t even know if his life will be safe when Saul finds out he has anointed a new king. There are so many unknowns but that’s when God works best. Samuel doesn’t even know Jesse or his sons but He knows that God has selected one of them. This gives him a space to put trust in God. This gives him an opportunity to give God the space to guarantee success. He would not be able to accomplish this mission without God. And that’s why it was successful.

God may call you to leave your job without knowing what is next. God may call you to give before knowing where the money will come from. God may call you to plan without a team. But it's all in your best interest because God is just leaving a seat open so that He can come on the journey with you. And when we try to have it all together and figure it out on our own, we are taking away the room for God to be a part of the process. 

God often calls us to trust His voice and not our eyes. Growth won't always look good or make sense on the surface and that's because God isn't looking at the outward appearance, He is looking deeper. He is looking at the heart. The logic and comfort found in our present often makes it hard for us to walk into the questionable nature of our future. Saul was a strapping, tall and accomplished leader from a great family who the people had high hopes for. If anyone was going to be king, Saul made sense. But God chose a young, farm boy who’s own family didn't think was worth being called inside for dinner. This switch didn't make sense on the surface but it was for their good. I want you to know that God will biasly choose to work with the things that make the least sense to you, but you have to trust that whatever God calls you to is for your good. 

These principles have helped me immensely in my walk with God. If you are at a crossroads and wondering where to go, God is often calling you to the path that leaves the most room for you to trust Him. God actually gives you opportunities that leave ample space for Him so that you will have success through Him.  We often go for ease and control. But I’ve learned that God works best when I know my limitations and don't feel like I can do it alone. When I'm dependent God is most powerful. 

God is calling you to grow and you may have to let go of some things but I want you to trust that it's for your best good. Lobsters are most violent when they’re about to molt because they are most scared. Leaders hear me. Your team will be the hardest to work with right before they have a breakthrough in innovation, but it will be for their good. The Israelites fought David the most right before he defeated Goliath for them. The Jews oppressed Jesus the most right before He died for them. Push back is to be expected right before a moment of greater success. Molting is the most vulnerable time in the lobster's life. You may be scared. You may be vulnerable. But this is the best opportunity to see God do more than you ever have before. Don’t forfeit a double portion of His Spirit and a life changing revelation of His character and power because you're afraid to grow. Let go of the past. And walk through the unknown into the future. 

God is really working on this principle with me right now and I see Him moving. God asked me to plan ROAR without my normal local team, without knowing the how and without having the money. But God is working so much and we aren’t just doing ROAR, we’re having an international youth and young adult day that you are invited to. People, entities and schools from across the nation are trying to get involved. I can’t even just say nation cause I’ve even heard that some international people want to pull up. So I’m asking for your prayers and support. And I’m asking that you pray your tail off. Why? Because God is going to move.

If you would like to give to this ministry (because ministry ain’t free lol) you can commit to a regular or one time donation through this website. I would greatly appreciate it because I have been paying for this ministry out of pocket. Also, if you feel led, please give to ROAR. Our Cash App is $BeInTheRoom. God moved before and He is going to move again. If you would like to make a more substantial, tax-deductible donation, or get involved by sending your youth group, school or volunteering, you can contact me and I would be more than happy to assist. Oh and if you wanna give to this ministry you can also use my Thoughts Cash App $ThoughtsByPace. God be with you. Thanks so much.