3 Steps to Let Go and Let God
How to let go and let God depends on your relationship with worry. Worry keeps you trapped in fear and unable to let go and trust God. Worry is your most loyal yet confusing friend. You know the one who pretends to be there for you, but leaves you feeling abandoned and confused? The one who reels you in with kindness, but stabs you in the back with gossip and criticism?
Yeah! Worry is that friend.
She initiates a lot of one-on-one time with you and makes you feel special. Together you pretend to solve the world’s problems over scrambled eggs and a creamy latte. You know Worry isn’t able to fix anything, but she’s loyal, comforting, and consistent, so you keep meeting her for friend dates.
Sometimes Worry’s ideas make so much sense that you’ll get a literal stomach ache while listening to her. When you’re together, her discussion points are so accurate that you trust her expertise over your own actual reality. Eventually, Worry becomes that tricky friend who demands too much of your time.
You feel almost nauseous around her but you’re too afraid to set boundaries with Worry. Her personality is so strong that she might say things that cause you to have a panic attack. Eventually, worry gets so intrusive that her influence begins to penetrate your other relationships.
It’s not long before you realize that Worry is a toxic friend and you must cut her off. You’ve spent so much time with her that you fear the loneliness that might accompany the loss. Still, you know that if you don’t take action, she might destroy you.
So you work up the courage to tell her “no” but she persists and you realize you must rely on Jesus to help yourself break away from Worry. You write Matthew 6:34 on a notecard and tape it to your vanity mirror, “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
Eventually, you begin to maintain some control over Worry’s efforts to bug you. While she still tries to spend time with you, her ideas, thoughts and strong personality no longer alter your ability to think for yourself. You believe God’s written words over her twisted thinking
You learned a powerful lesson about the deception of Worry’s friendship. You’re stronger now. You’re less naive. You’re more confident in your ability to say no to Worry. God’s strength sustains you, and you thrive in the struggle because you are made to be courageous.
Here are three concrete steps you can take to let go and let God:
Memorize Bible Verses About Worry
There is nothing more powerful you can do to let go and let God than to memorize bible verses about worry. Replacing the lies of the enemy in your thoughts with the truth of God is the quickest way to stamp out worry. You cannot let go and let God without listening to what he says. If you stay in your own head, you’ll never get anywhere.
The Lord knew you would struggle with worry, and how to let go and let God, so he provided a lot of truth in his word addressing your fears. When you memorize some of these verses, you are adding weapons against these intrusive thoughts and lies of the enemy.
Pick at least three verses to memorize, and work on one a week. Write it on a note card and place it on your mirror, your car dash, your planner, or anywhere you look often. You can also use the You Verse Bible App to make a picture with the verse on it and save it as your home screen on your phone.
Once you start memorizing these scriptures, you will eventually get to where the Holy Spirit will bring them to mind when you need them the most. They will give you the ammunition you need at the moment to let go and let God. When you let God, miraculous things happen.
Philippians 4:6-7 says “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Matthew 6:25-34 says “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”
1 Peter 5:6-7 says “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”
Philippians 4:19 says “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
Joshua 1:9 says “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Proverbs 3:5-6 says “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
Jeremiah 17:7-8 says “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.”
Psalm 23 says “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
Colossians 3:15 says “And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.”
Isaiah 26:3 says “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.”
Hebrews 13:6 says “So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”
2 Timothy 1:7 says “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”
Now pick three of your favorite verses and begin to memorize them. This will give you the power you need at the moment to let go and let God. Or pick some of your favorite verses that the Holy Spirit puts on your heart and memorize those.
Journal Your Worries and God’s Responses
One of the most powerful practices you can do to let go and let God is to journal your specific fears, and next to them write God’s direct response to those fears from the scripture. This is one of the exercises you will find in the Health Habits Bible Study.
Here are some examples of what journaling your worries and God’s responses could look like.
Your worry: “I’m worried about the economy and having enough money to make ends meet at the end of the month.”
God’s response: Matthew 6:26 “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”
Your worry: “I’m worried about my body, the way it looks, being overweight, and not feeling healthy enough to live life to the fullest.”
God’s response: 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”
Your worry: I’m worried about my kids and them following after the Lord and making good life choices.
God’s response: Isaiah 54:13 “All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children.”
Your worry: I’m worried about work and not feeling competent and like I’m not keeping up with everyone else.
God’s response: Proverbs 16:3 “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.”
Your worry: I feel overwhelmed by everything, like I’m always behind, exhausted, and there’s not enough of me to go around for everyone and everything I need to accomplish.
God’s response: Philippians 4:19 “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
Your worry: My relationship with my (spouse, in-laws, family, coworkers, neighbors, etc.) is tumultuous. It seems no matter what I do I can’t make them happy and I feel like I’m failing.
God’s response: Romans 12:17-21 “Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
If you are struggling in a certain area, you may need a whole list of verses to help you let go and let God. Grab a journal and write out your worries, then use the concordance in your bible or use openbible.com to search for verses that fit the area you are struggling in and write them down. Refer back to this list every morning and throughout the day as you notice those intrusive thoughts of worry take over.
Invite Your Brothers and Sisters in Christ to Pray for You
You were not created to walk out your journey as a Christian alone. The Church is the body of Christ and is there to bless you, pray for you, create a sense of community, refine you, and give you an outlet to serve others and give your tithes and offerings. If you are struggling in a particular area to let go and let God, you need other believers to pray for you.
James 5:16 says “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” The key to being healed is confession and prayer with another trusted believer. Even if that is a Christian Counselor or a pastor you share your burden and pray with, you need to get your struggle out of hiding and into the light.
There are powerful chains being broken on heaven and earth when you invite others to pray for you, so you can let go, and let God!
You may also enjoy these articles filled with scripture you can pray over:
30 Bible Verses About Self-Control
What Does the Bible Say About Depression?
Mendy Shriver, MA, PLPC
I am a Christian Counselor with a passion for teaching women Biblical healthy habits. I offer private counseling, and a Healthy Habits Bible Study and 90-Day Journal for Christian women and church groups.
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