Memory verse: They came out from us because they were not of us. If they had been of us that would have stuck it out with us. 1 John 2:19
Psalm 91
Task: Write a letter to the ex that you find yourself still hanging on to. Express everything that you have been too afraid, doubtful, too whatever to express. Then pray over it and DESTROY IT. Setting someone free truly sets you free
Everyone has one. That ex that you feel like is the one that got away. That person that you truly thought you would spend the rest of your life with, yet something went wrong and you are no longer together. I have two such exes in my past. One was an on-again off-again long distance boyfriend in undergrad and the other more recent was about 2 years ago.
The most recent one shook me to my core. If I could have picked what I wanted for my husband out of a catalogue he would have surely stepped off the pages. That’s how perfect I thought he was. He was sweet, caring, protective, honest, covered me spiritually and emotionally and he not only respected my vow of celibacy, HE HAD HIS OWN. He had vowed not to kiss another person’s wife, so he wasn’t kissing again until the alter. I was in bliss, but he only had one flaw- he.left.me. And when he left, he took a piece of something vital inside of me. How do I know? Because breathing hurt. Even crying hurt, nothing helped…BUT GOD.
I share this because this is a very real situation, dealing with that one that you thought was gonna be a permanent fixture, but apparently only applied for a temporary position. I never want anyone to think because I have gotten to a certain point of satisfaction in my singleness that I don’t relate with just about every scenario that you can think of on this journey. Yet, I’ve survived-so you can too.
Dealing with a breakup is hard. Especially if it’s one that you didn’t want, and you realize there is nothing that you can do to fix it. The hardest part about letting go is…LETTING GO. I was so afraid to give that relationship to God because I was afraid that He wouldn’t give it back to me and it was my will for me. But as Jeremiah 29:11 comforted me in that time, it still comforts me. He knows the plans he has for, and they are for my good and not for harm. This breakup did not BREAK me. It taught me that I still needed to learn balance. I needed to truly realize that the only man I can’t live without is Jesus. A Godly man/woman can’t replace your God. You may desire an earthly spouse, but you only need an Eternal Savior. Sometimes this is a hard pill to swallow- realizing that it is a desire, but that it hasn’t been actualized yet.
You have to realize that a person can have all the qualities that you may think you want, but still not be the one that God has for you. Remember that we can’t know the thoughts of God, but we can be assured that we serve a ‘nevertheless’ God. If God tells you, he/she is not the one—even if by what you see they fit your criteria—will you still be able to reject them? We would all like to say yes, but if we are honest, how many exes do we have that we knew God didn’t want us to be with in the first place? You have to decide if you want God’s created best or only your imagined best. Or, does the answer depend on which comes first? If you are tired of waiting, and haven’t done your homework to commit to wait, this will be a hard question to answer honestly. I can almost guarantee that your top pick will come before God’s, if for no other reason but to test how much more you will trust God and wait for His provision.
God still has a plan for you, but you have to let go of your past to get to your future. This reminds me of the passage of the anointing of David in 1 Samuel 16. The passage opens up with the Lord confronting Samuel about his continuous mourning over Saul’s rejection. God asks, “How long will you mourn over Saul when I have rejected him? Fill your horn with oil and go… for I have chosen another king.” These two verses are so important and speak to holding on to something that God Himself has rejected. Samuel was so focused on mourning who God had said was no longer for him that he had to be persuaded to go find the one that God was bestowing favor on.
The thought of holding on to something even a moment longer than God’s Spirit is resting on it, seems ludicrous to even write but in our lives we do it all too often. We sit and re- read letters, and hold on to old pictures and movie stubs in a shoebox that we pull out when we are feeling lonely, which is stupid because it only intensifies our loneliness.
I can imagine Samuel remembering all the “good ole times” with Saul and weeping. I have always heard that hindsight is 20/20, but I think in relationships, sometimes the rearview mirror is a bit cloudy. I know when I was afraid of being alone, (because I didn’t understand the difference between it and loneliness) I would think back to old relationships and remember all the good times, while conveniently forgetting or sometimes even reworking the details of the bad times.
I bet if you go back in your relationship rolodex, you have had a couple of “Samuel” moments as well. Vow to break that cycle. There was a reason he was rejected—don’t forget that. Do what it takes to let go of past relationships. In regards to old relationships, when God closes a door, if we allow, He will paint over it so we can’t find it even when (not if) we try. Allow God to fill your horn with oil and be on your way. Your “David” is waiting for you while you’re wasting valuable time on a rejected “Saul.”
Realize that no one who can or will leave you is tied to your destiny. If a person is ordained to be in your future, they will be there, even if they temporarily leave. So if they decide to leave you now, just know that they will be swinging the door the other way at some point if ordained.
It’s ok to mourn a past relationship, but don’t allow that to blind you from learning what God always meant to teach you in it, and then moving on. Christ needs you whole to complete His vision and your spouse needs you whole to complement theirs’. Don’t keep the two real relationships in your life waiting while you hold on to something that has been rejected.
FILL YOUR HORN WITH OIL AND GO.