My heart was pounding as I walked down the hall to Mr. Otty’s office. Taking several deep breaths, I mentally rehearsed my speech. I’d be leaving mid-year to accompany my husband in a job transfer to Indianapolis. The past three years at Bensalem High School had been the best experience of my short teaching career. I had finally won my own classroom in a subject I loved. Another teacher and I had even created a job placement service for our graduating seniors. Oh the joy of having them report back from successful interviews! I loved being part of these kids’ lives and feeling like I made a difference. But now I had to leave my dream job behind.
It was bittersweet because the excitement of a move to the Midwest felt very right. We had seen God’s hand in it all. But that meant leaving Bensalem and all the Lord helped me create and accomplish. It meant I had to resign. Walk away.
Mr. Otty’s kindness brought me to tears. I tried to stifle my emotions as I explained the situation to my principal. The dates were set and they would secure my replacement. Hopefully, there would be time for me to train her before my departure. I had to make sure she took care of what I created. I had to hand everything over to someone else. All I had worked for would no longer be mine. I resigned.
And we left Pennsylvania for what my Eastern friends teasingly dubbed, “Indiana-no-place,” (which, by the way, became, ” Indiana-best-place” over the next 40 years of my life!). I never looked back. All of my responsibilities belonged to someone else and were no longer my concern.
I was reminded of my resignation just yesterday when my friend, Kim, told me about “resigning” things into God’s hands. The word had stirred something inside of her, and as she shared it with me, the wheels began to turn. The Lord often speaks to me through a word and this one pierced my heart. Circumstances had been troubling me. Things I couldn’t figure out. I was fighting fear over the future, things unknown. I found myself taking burdens back off the Lord ‘s shoulders and placing them on mine. Worry, fear, concern, and the desire to make things happen had replaced my peace. So in a moment of time, God spoke through my friend and a memory. It was time to resign from these things. God was in control of my circumstances. Not me. It was His job to rule over them. Not mine.
The governing of our lives is upon His shoulders. (Isaiah 9:6)
God’s divine will has been set in motion, and He doesn’t need my help. He certainly doesn’t want my interference. What He does desire is my trust. So today, I’m making it official. I am handing in my resignation. I am resigning from the job of fixing, interfering, and designing my circumstances, including my children’s. That means no more worry, fear or dread (now there’s a challenge!). I’m walking away from being in charge and handing over that responsibility to God.
Is there anything from which you need to resign, mom? Just because you’ve been fixings things for your kids all these years doesn’t mean you should continue running interference. It’s not your job to fix your children’s future. God wrote down His plan before they were even born. Can you trust the Lord to complete His will and purpose in their lives? In yours? Frances Roberts puts it this way: “Resign” all into His hands–your loved ones as well as your own self.
You can do it with God’s help. Resign from governing. Resign from trying to figure it all out. God wants to take over that responsibility today. And as you walk away, you can trust Him to take care of what He helped you create.