I don’t know about you, but I absolutely hate goodbyes. I remember back in primary school when our friendship group slowly fell apart because one friend had to relocate, then another, and eventually we all ended up at different high schools. Because I’m a lover girl, I wrote so many letters to my friends. By the way, I still love the old kind of love where we leave notes, write letters, and nobody feels the need to be nonchalant.
These days, they say if you love people, don’t call them so they can miss you. Don’t show them you care. Don’t reply too fast. Don’t be too available. Don’t do this, don’t do that. A whole list of exhausting rules that somehow turn love into such a wearying task. I hate it. Back then, I’d write letters promising my friends that we’d grow up and stay friends forever. Of course, that didn’t happen, but looking back, I think that was just my little way of grieving goodbyes.
We grieve goodbyes. Sometimes we grieve before they happen, sometimes during, and sometimes long after they’re over. I’ve said goodbye to a lot of people at different stages of my life. For some, I won’t even lie, it felt like a relief program. I was sooooo relieved we had to part ways because the toxicity was stronger than a scorpion’s poison . Actually, they were scorpions. Scorpion Kings.. Toxicity Pro Max. Full bars. Strongest network but if I’m being honest, some goodbyes absolutely wrecked me.
Because I’m a lover, I’m also a crier. So yes, I cried. On the flip side, we don’t only say goodbye to people. We say goodbye to places, jobs, seasons, and whatever must be left behind. The truth is, at some point, we’ll all have to wave goodbye to something or we’ll be the ones being left behind or doing the leaving. What have you said goodbye to? How did you feel? Was it a person? A location? Was it a relief program or the wrecking goodbye?
I’m reminded of Abraham and Sarah. Remember, Abraham had no plans to leave home until God told him to. Imagine just chilling with your family, your favourite cousins, your friends. You know your city inside out, you’ve got a job there, life is life-ing, and then one day God says, “Pack up.” Mind you, you’re not packing to come back in a few months. You’re packing to turn your back on everything familiar and leave it behind. That’s a serious goodbye. As in the one that if you wrote a letter you’d end up writing a book.
When the only option on the table is to leave, and God has told you to, darling, you do what Abraham did. You pack up and go. I’ve had my fair share of moving houses, and let me tell you, I looooved our previous apartment. It had the most beautiful mountain view and the best balcony ever. I spent so many evenings out there, staring at the stars and simply enjoying time with the Lord. So when it was time to move, I felt that grief of detachment. It wasn’t just the apartment either it was the walkways, the familiar corners, the little things that had quietly become part of me.
In the same way, when we grieve people, we grieve every part of them, their smile, their voice, their scent, their little habits, their everything. After all is said and done, when it’s time to leave, we still have to pack up and go. What about the onions of Egypt? What about the spices and the cucumbers? God factored all of that in when He told you to leave. He knew you loved the spices, yet He still said, “Get out of there.” To God, your love for the spices was never more important than your journey into the new. This also means my darling that your attachment to that relationship is not more important than His plan to lead you to the right person.
Your comfort is not more important than your calling. God has already weighed what you’re leaving against what He’s leading you into, and He knows the latter is far greater. Oh, so you’ll miss the food from Egypt? Then trust that there’s food where you’re going. When it’s time to leave, excuses won’t move God. He sees what you can’t yet see, knows what’s truly important, and will faithfully leads you there. When the only option on the table is to leave, I wish there was another way, I even wish there was another option or alternative but there’s none. You just pack up and leave.
There is a Scripture that says, “The glory of the latter house shall be greater than that of the former.” We remember the laughter, the view, the people, the memories, and we convince ourselves that nothing could ever compare to the former but God isn’t asking you to leave because the former was bad. Sometimes He asks you to leave because what lies ahead carries greater glory. The latter house isn’t better because the former had no value; it’s better because God’s presence, purpose, and promise are waiting there. So don’t let your attachment to yesterday rob you of the glory prepared for tomorrow. See you tomorrow
If you read my blogs but have never met this Wonderful Jesus that I’m always writing about, you’d love to get to know Him, Or you know The Lord but have found yourself drifting far from Him, I would love to talk with you. Please send me an email on yieldedcwcenter@gmail.com or simply comment, and I will reach out to you
