Let it Go!

“For perfect hope is achieved on the brink of despair, when instead of falling over the edge, we find ourselves walking on air.”

~ Thomas Merton

At Filled With Less, we want to help you get serious about breaking through the roadblocks to peace, joy, and productivity that have held you back for years. I am so passionate about this mission because I personally wrestled with scatteredness, avoidance, and disorganization for decades resulting in anxiousness, overwhelm and discontent.

My almost two year journey on this path of simplicity and intentionality has transformed my life. Small consistent changes, and immersing myself in a community of women devoted to pursuing wellness and decluttering their thoughts, schedules and living spaces, has produced growth in areas of my life I’d completely given up on.

I’ve learned a lot about the power of stillness and time management to bring about order and calm in my home and in my soul. And I’ve discovered why love is the only motivation resilient enough to keep me getting back up when I stumble. Perhaps my most surprising and profound realization, however, has been that transformation is on the other side of death – death to my own will and passions.

You see, when life brings you to the end of yourself and your soul begins to burn with a desire for change, it’s like standing at the edge of a cliff where behind you lies chaos and destruction and the only way forward is to take a leap of faith into the abyss of the unknown. That leap of faith, wherein Christ is beckoning you to release the past and to shed your old passions, expectations, mindsets, etc. is the beginning of your rebirth. But you have to travel light. You won’t leap very high or get very far if you try and drag alongside you your doubts and resentments, fears and assumptions. Letting go is scary and vulnerable, but is necessary for your growth and freedom.

Of all the habits and tools we talk about in our course, there is none more important than a morning routine. Just a few minutes of quiet to, every new day, surrender your will to God’s will and get out of your own way so that His wisdom, His stamina, His discipline, His resilience will override your weakness and feelings of incompetence. Unclenching your fist and laying at His feet all of your worries and desires, opens your ears to His guidance and heart to His promise that “All things work together for good to them that love God.” (Rom. 8:28)

When I was sick and tired of being stressed and despondent, my own leap of faith began with admitting to God I could do nothing without His help and intervention. Praying, “I can’t!” was the beginning of my healing. I had tried, quite unsuccessfully, for far too long, to conjure up my own strength, self- discipline and perseverance but it was like running in place, exhausting myself and getting nowhere.

 So I leapt into the unknown! Laying aside what I thought I wanted, emptying my mind of opinions and anxious thoughts, ridding my soul of biases and pride. I first worked on emptying myself so God could fill me with Himself. And miraculously, a brand new path began to appear before me.  Through seeking out Christ in the quiet every morning, the “next right thing” started to reveal itself, from one moment to the next, with a clarity I had never experienced before. One small healthy decision led to another and another and another, slowly  increasing my peace, joy and productivity, and blessing my relationships with those around me.   

We all long for calm and fruitfulness but experience frustration when we can’t obtain them on our own. If you’ve tried over and over and over again to be a better steward of your body, time, home, and relationships only to burn out and give up, do not despair! There is hope! Christ is calling you to get out of your own way and allow Him to take over. Let go! Let God! Seek Him first and everything else will fall into place.

With love,

Molly Sabourin