"hello, goodbye"

I was out of town this weekend, and visited another church. I think it's amazing how God works no matter where you go, because the sermon really spoke to some areas in my life... "Sometimes there are things in our lives that we must say Goodbye to before we can say Hello to something else." Wow. I don't think I was ready to hear it put so simply and plainly- it felt more like it was written on a sign with flashing neon lights. Am I ready and, more importantly, willing to say Goodbye? I don't know. Even when something is bad for you it is hard to give up and let go...

For example, I love chocolate. If I say Goodbye to chocolate then I might say Hello to weight loss. Granted, that is kind of a lame example, but it is to the point... In my life, there are a couple of relationships that I may be better off if I were to say "Goodbye." So, even though I know that there are much better relationships out there waiting on me to say Goodbye to the old and Hello to the new... Why am I still not ready to say Goodbye? I don't know. Probably because it's scary and it means life as I know it will be different... Because it's HARD. It's Complicated. It's messy. It's heartbreaking.

The dictionary defines 'Goodbye' as:1. An acknowledgment at parting, especially by saying "goodbye."2. An act of parting or leave-taking: many sad goodbyes.I don't want to acknowledge the parting. I don't want that particular person to take the action of parting... I want what I want, and sometimes what I want gets in the way of what God is trying to do in my life. What? I should trust God that if I take leave of one thing then I will say Hello to something amazing?? hmm... This brings me back to sermon from Sunday on Luke 5:1-11. :) Here are some notes that I jotted down:

• What miracles are going undone in your life because you passed up the opportunities to trust God?
• Sometimes we trust Him with our spiritual life, but not the rest of our life...
• Sometimes it's safer on the shore (or, so we think).
• Obedience came before the blessing... Peter had to ACT first.
  Recognize that it won't always make sense, but if Jesus says so...
• "I don't get it, but because YOU say so..."
• Are we living, as Christians, too safe of a life?
  

For me, the safe life has been being unhappily content in my life. Ironic, huh? I am generally a happy person, but recently I've been miserable. I've been unhappy because I did say one of the hardest, saddest, depressing Goodbyes to someone I deeply care about. I haven't trusted God that the eventual Hello to someone new will be better than I could imagine. I've jipped myself out of pretty awesome things because I have passed up opportunities to trust Him. (hmmm... I think this is where bittersweet comes into play).

I think I'm ready for the bittersweet Goodbye to turn into a sweet Hello...