"Commit thy way unto the Lord;
trust also in Him;
and He shall bring it to pass."
- Psalm 37:5

There was no way that I was going to do it.

As a little boy, my dad and I, along with the my mom and little sister, went periodically to an area lake to swim.  I remember very vividly those days at Lake Charles.  We would spend hours out there in the roped off section provided for swimmers.

I remember the day that my dad first tried to teach me how to swim.  We had separated from my sister and mom, moving farther out into the water.  I grabbed hold of the rope that surrounded the perimeter of the swimming area and pulled myself out to where my dad was...

...which was in water quite a bit over my head!

I held fast to the heavy rope, as it was what kept me afloat.  It was my source of security that allowed me to hold my head above water.

It was then that my father asked me to do a strange things.  He swam over closer to me and said, "Let go of the rope and I'll hold you up while you practice swimming."

"Now way!" I cried out to him in disbelief.  "If I let go, then I will drown."

My father looked at me and said with a great deal of confidence and authority, "You won't drown because I'll be holding on to you.  Trust me.  Let go of the rope."

There was something in the way that he said it that left no room for doubt.  My father was sure of what he was telling me.  There was only one thing that I could do, and so I...

...let go.  

Instantly my fathers strong arms took hold of me and held me fast and safe, just like he said he would.

You know, that is how we often interact with our Heavenly Father.  Know what I mean?

We hang on to the ropes of life.  We hold fast to those things that make us feel secure...things like our money, our time, our priorities, our entertainment, our words and deeds...basically the way we want to live our lives.  We find it hard to leave our comfort zones and step out in faith.

"But, I can't teach a Sunday school class.  I can't give that extra offering.  I can't witness at work.  I can't give up my entertainment.  I can't surrender to missions.  I can't accomplish that.  I can't make it through this hardship.  I can't overcome that sin.  I can't give this up..."

All the while our Father says, "Let go and I'll hold you up."

"No way.  If I let go, then I will drown.  If I let go, then I will fail.  If I let go, then my security is gone.  If I let go, then I am no longer in control."

And God's reply?  "You won't drown because I'll be holding on to you."

This morning, maybe the Lord is calling you to do a special work for Him or to witness to a certain lost soul He has placed in your path.  Perhaps today there is an area of your life that God has instructed you to make changes in.  It could be possible that you are facing the unknown, some hardship or difficulty that you have a deep fear or anxiety about.

Whatever it is that God has instructed you to do, whatever area of you life you have doubts or fears in, God, with confidence and authority in His voice, would say to you this morning...