Today I dropped my son off (my only child) to begin his college journey. One of the most difficult goodbyes to date – very bittersweet. Excited for all of the awesome things to come for him, yet sad to see him go off into the world on his own.

As I miserably failed at holding back the tears, I remembered this was a necessary part of the journey. Trying to hold on to my baby would hinder him from moving forward in his destiny…into greatness become the great man God wants him to be. As I said my final goodbyes, as I let my son go, I remembered that he was in very capable Hands.

I think of another mother who had to let go. Moses’ mother. The mother of a fine child, a future prince, a great leader, a deliverer. Her story condensed to less than a 100 words but her faith extending beyond that which can be measured. This mother had no idea what her son’s future held but she knew for sure was that he was destined for greatness. If he was going to become the man he was to become, she had to let him go.

“And a man of the house of Levi went and took as wife a daughter of Levi. So the woman conceived and bore a son. And when she saw that he was a beautiful child, she hid him three months. But when she could no longer hide him, she took an ark of bulrushes for him, daubed it with asphalt and pitch, put the child in it, and laid it in the reeds by the river’s bank.” – Exodus‬ ‭2:1-3‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Letting go is hard. Letting go requires having faith. Letting go allows God to draw the best of out of children – even when it hurts us to let go.

As mothers (even fathers), this is difficult for us to do. Watching from a far as your child navigates the twists and turns of life, desperately wanting to reach in to push them in the right direction, wanting to steer them and protect them from the current events and waves of this thing called life. But there comes a time when we have to let go.

No matter where your child is in their journey, they are in the great I Am’s hands. It is okay to let go. God has them.

Heavenly Father, Help us to let go and leave our children in Your loving care. They belonged to You first and always. Your love for them far surpasses that of any parent. You care for them greatly and have great plans for them. We may not be privy to those plans right now and they may not even be what we had in mind for them,  but we know that they are in Your hands. They may take some unexpected turns on their journey but You are in control and know exactly what they need. You know what is best. You know exactly what it takes to draw them from whatever waters they are in and whatever mountains they may face. You are there with them. Position us to watch and trust You with their destinies.

In Jesus Name, Amen