Saying Goodbye Is Not Always Easy, But Necessary

February 27, 2021.

Let’s be honest for a minute. Saying goodbye to old habits, unhealthy relationships, feelings of deep betrayal, and emotional baggage is simply not that easy. Doing so can make this process seem like an unnecessary evil that many are willing to avoid. But trust me, it’s necessary. There is a choice to be made. Do I embrace what is in front of me, do I walk away, or do I simply say goodbye?

If you stay in one place for too long, you could easily miss out on the fresh start you never knew awaited you because you never really found the strength to turn the page. And if you exit too soon, you may find that you didn’t stay still long enough to allow yourself sufficient time to heal or to say the appropriate goodbyes so you truly can move forward.

Experiencing any type of trauma makes it that much easier to hold on to things you really need to let go of, like anger, unforgiveness, all kinds of fears and insecurities. It becomes even more difficult when you haven’t fully recovered what you lost, again making it easy to dwell on the negative, or to keep replaying the offense or past hurt over and over again.

But as I sit and reflect on my own goodbyes, my mind keeps taking me back to one scripture that put things in perspective for me. Philippians 4:8 (The Amplified Version) It says “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable and worthy of respect, whatever is right and confirmed by God’s word, whatever is pure and wholesome, whatever is lovely and brings peace, whatever is admirable and of good repute; if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think continually on these things.”

This one scripture helped me and is still helping me to see the benefit of not dwelling on the things the enemy wants us to dwell on, things that cause more damage than good. We have to practice closing the wrong doors so that a better door will open.

We must continually tell ourselves that God is for us and His desire is to fill our lives with goodness and acts of love. He gives us a way to enjoy life by reminding us to continually focus on those things that are beautiful, that bring peace and that are worth thinking about. He wants nothing more than to shower us with His blessings and to see us fulfill the purpose He has for our life.

I challenge you, if the thoughts that fill your mind breed worry, fear, contention, comparisons, distrust, anger, lust, disappointment, regret, hopelessness, then it’s time to say goodbye. Be intentional about replacing those thoughts with God’s Word.

Saying goodbye to unhealthy thoughts, feelings, behaviors and relationships is not always easy but necessary. When there is nothing left to say, nothing left to process, and nothing left to salvage, say goodbye.  When you find yourself struggling with things you really need to let go of, say goodbye so that you can move forward and enjoy the life God has prepared just for you. Goodbye worry. Goodbye fear. Goodbye intimidation. Goodbye depression. Goodbye lies. Goodbye hurt. Goodbye loneliness.

Sometimes you don’t have to say a lot. Sometimes the most powerful words are the ones that are short and to the point.

Goodbye.

I encourage you to focus on everything that is true, and good, and lovely and commendable in God’s eyes. And to every negative thought, emotion, and behavior that attempts to steal who God says you are, there is only one thing to say…

Goodbye.