There are times when you connect with another writer and in the process discover all the things you have in common. Linda Stoll is one of those people. Even though our friendship spans across internet miles, we find how God continues to lead us on similar paths. It is reassuring to have a “Me too” comrade in arms.
Today, I am honored to welcome Linda to this space. Enjoy her wisdom, heartfelt words, and the unfolding of how she learns to lay her Isaac down.
Join her weekly HERE at her own blogging home.
There’s something challenging about sharing a post at someone else’s place. Even though you might know a number of her readers, you want to put your best foot forward because you’re a guest in her home and you want to honor her gracious welcome with an offering that’s in some way meaningful or provocative or eye-catching.
And, truth be told, you hope that maybe you’ll gain a few new readers of your own in the process.
I’ve been mulling over about a half dozen different topics for this post. But Isaac’s story keeps coming back, haunting me, whispering, ‘share this, share this.’
And so I will.
You’ve most likely read the Old Testament passage where Abraham was tested by God, who asked His faithful servant to pack up his son, Isaac, along with a bunch of firewood and a few servants, and head on a three day trek up a mountain … to offer that beloved young man, his only son, as a sacrifice.
As in tying him up and laying him on top of firewood on an altar and presenting him as a burnt offering.
Genesis 22:1-19 tells the riveting story.
I . can’t . even . begin . to . imagine.
A doting father’s initial unspeakable horror upon hearing God’s request. The undaunted faith of this man of God, willing to be obedient because He was confident in God’s character and knew that He’d provide. The most welcome salvation of the Lord announced by an angel. The provision of a ram held hostage by his horns in a nearby thicket.
What went through this young man’s mind as he realized that there was no sacrificial lamb in their baggage as he and his dad trudged side by side up the mountain? What terrors did he experience as he realized what was unfolding? Did he freak out, screaming and trying to fight off his father as he bound him tight and laid him on the altar’s wood and raised the knife?
And then the counselor inside of me wonders what Isaac’s relationship with his father looked like in the years that followed. How could it not be drastically altered by his father’s radical act of obedience? Did he end up traumatized by the near disaster? Did he wrestle with trust issues, suffer with some kind of anxiety disorder, or experience PTSD as he himself grew to be a man of God?
Fast forward down through the generations. God continues to call us to listen up. To hear His tenderly powerful voice. To stretch and enlarge our faith. To be obedient to His sometimes monumental requests.
To be willing to release our misplaced sense of entitlement or ownership of the people, places, and things we prize, that we grasp tightly, that we call beloved. Any and all dreams we cling to, ministries we value, positions we’d like to attain. Hopes of good health we’re hanging our hats on … or maybe that bit of hard earned money socked away for the future.
Whatever, whoever we think we could never live without.
God desires that we freely release anybody and everything that even begins to approach taking the number one place in the deepest parts of who we are, that would threaten to dethrone Him from His rightful place in the center of our souls.
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For some time, I’ve been in process of releasing all kinds of stuff that was never mine to own.
Difficult family situations that I desperately wanted to fix. Carefully planned agendas and big dreams that I figured I could somehow make happen. My own hard-earned opinions and a few relationships that weren’t all that good for me.
Areas where my control freak tendencies came roaring to the forefront. The propensity to crave affirmation. Visions for ministry, some that came to be and those that never quite appeared.
I’m finding that as I release yet one more heart-wrenching scenario or deeply felt
And sooner or later He again whispers conviction about yet one more person, place, or thing that’s taking up sacred space that should be reserved for Him and Him alone.
And once again, I raise my hands to lay my Isaac down.
What is the Isaac you need to lay down today? How will you make room for God in your sacred space?
I’ve always loved the story of Isaac. Abraham had such tangible, real memories of sitting under the stars with God – I’m sure Isaac heard that story over and over again – and that he felt through those stories a responsibility to the future. I love how he was obedient about his bride – and how after Sarah died, Rebekkah helped him grieve. I think he had a heart for those around him – and the only biblical record of him going to God was for Rebekkah to have children – and that’s where I learned about the power and grace of a praying husband – but you made me think today – of that covenant and the responsibility to that convenant. Was it the only time he prayed? Was it for the covenant, the promise – or because of the love for his wife. I think I’ve gone off on a tangent here – but you made me think. Do I have Isaacs that I need to give up? I gave my writing to him a long time ago – before blogging – and then he gave it back to me 10 years ago. I love your heart Linda and how you always open my eyes to either something new or you remind me of what I need reminding of! Shalom sweet lady! ~ Maryleigh
Your admission gave me goosebumps, Maryleigh –> ‘ I gave my writing to him a long time ago – before blogging – and then he gave it back to me 10 years ago.’
We never know what God will do with what we give Him. He knows the deepest desires of our hearts, doesn’t He …
Beautiful words! The story of Isaac is one of my favorites out of the Bible. It reminds me what I have is not mine to hold. My goal this year is all about letting go to take hold of God. I have been hanging on to too many things that were never mine to hold. Your words have encouraged me. Thank you!
It sounds like you are learning how to surrenderI will be praying for you as you let go to take hold of God. Blessings!
I love that you said this, Maree –> ‘ I have been hanging on to too many things that were never mine to hold.’
This is true for most of us I’m guessing …
Your words speak life into me today, Linda. I got a chuckle out of your counselor questions…after working with students who deal with a high level of trauma, I’ve started asking myself those same sorts of questions! Imagine if we all asked those questions when we run up against someone who is surly.
Anita, I try not to wear my counselor hat too often {some family members think it’s obnoxious} … but sometimes it can’t be helped. I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who looks at life with those lenses of compassionate curiosity!
Thank you for joining in the conversation.
Wonderful post that taught and spoke God’s word to many here, I see, Linda and Mary! Content seems to be the word God wants me to embrace–to lay down what I see as successful. I’d love to build up my blogging for example, but can’t seem to always keep up with what I have built when other life things start to take up more space, & don’t just want to hurry-up my writing. Instead, do all well and my very best with all that is presented to me. It is hard to give-up, let go the things we may have worked so hard for, yet have to trust that it just might be what God wants us to offer up to Him right now. Trust and trust again and again!
I absolutely hear you about the blogging, Lynn … and all things social media. Many of us are still trying to figure out what it should look like, for sure!
Trust is the key word here. I am nodding my head as I read that it is hard to give up things that we have worked hard for. But we also need to discern if and when God is calling us to lay something down. Thank you for adding your wisdom to the conversation.
As I go through the book of Genesis, I’ve had the same thoughts. What was the impact of this event on Isaac and Abraham? It shall remain a mystery! The impact it has on us doesn’t have to be a mystery, though! Thank you for leading us toward trusting the Lord with the things we love.
Yes and amen, the impact of God’s Word and God’s people is profound and life-altering. Amy, you’ve said it so well …
Too ill to leave more than this.
The devil may have sown the wind,
but it’s the whirlwind he shall reap.
I’m sure not good, I have sinned,
but I’m still a badass sheep.
The cancer sent has beat me down
and laid me on the ground;
he’s fitting me for a funeral-gown
but just wait – I’ll come around.
My heart is light, my fists are stone,
and there’s nothing left to lose.
I’m not going into this alone
because of Him who I did choose.
I will hurt, and I will die,
but death’s vict’ry is a LIE.
I’m honored that you’ve made your way to Mary’s this evening, Andrew. And am pleased to introduce my friends here to you, oh valiant warrior.
Thank you for supporting Linda here at my place. Your poetry is a testimony to the fight that still lingers within you.
A hard challenge to us, but a beautiful sacrifice to the Lordship of Christ. My desires for what I want from this writing thing and the details of the job my husband will find I am constantly trying to lay down. I say constantly because I keep trying to pick them back up. Thank you for a good message. laurensparks.net
Lauren, I hear you about trying to pick up what we’ve released! It’s like we don’t quite know who we are when we’ve been freed from our burdens and so we lapse into that exhausting default mode yet again!
This is such an important message. “My control freak tendencies come roaring to the forefront.” That describes me to a “T.” I heard Emily P Freeman say once that her husband begins each day in silence, asking the Lord, “What do I need to let go of?”
Wow, what a profound prayer to begin … and end … each day. Betsy, thank you for sharing those 8 words … I’m off to write them down, to make them my own.
I am nodding my head with both of you when it comes to control freak tendencies. Ugh! I keep letting go and grabbing it all back. I have also heard Emily describe her husband’s morning routine. I love the question he poses each day.
Linda, this rings so true in my own ears this morning. I have clung so tightly to people and situations that I should let go. I know my control issues that run so deep. Thank you for such a timely reminder and truth!
Thank you for being here, Pam! Linda shared wisdom and truth beautifully today.
Oh I absolutely hear your heart, Pam. You’re in good company here, friend …
Everybody has control issues to one degree or another. It depends on how we used control in different stages of life.
I doubt and fight unbelief more often than I like so “laying down my Isaac” can be a confusing concept for me.
Jennifer has kind of summed up my thoughts: “It’s that unknown space fraught with frustration that’s harder for me than sacrifice. I have felt relief when the certainty comes that I have to let go, even when it’s hard.”
I have let go of much in my life but I can lay things down when I am sure that is what God is saying…other things not so much.
Oh yes, Carol … we so yearn to know that the voice we’re hearing is God’s and His alone, especially in those frustrations, disappointments, and uncertainties. May you know His gentle kindness as you continue discerning His loving guidance in your life.
There is a tension in those in between places that catches us unaware and uncertain. I have also been in that space and pray in the letting go that God is catching the loose pieces of my doubt and making them whole. Blessed to have you here today.
Thank you Mary and Linda for sharing these precious thoughts today. The Lord used that Isaac story from the very beginning of my relationship with my husband–it’s been 41 years ago now that He asked us to do that very thing with our hopes and love for each other. But He knew how to give the gift back to us in the best possible way, through His own covering. Thank you for this sweet reminder today, it was just what I needed. Blessings to you both!
I love that you and your husband were able to receive back from the Lord in the ways He thought best … and that yeasr later, Bettie, this experience remains a blessed recollection of His grace.
Your testimony encourages us to look beyond this afternoon for answers we seek for …
What a beautiful story, Bettie! Thank you for your testimony to your 41 year message and your choice to lay your Isaac down so God could fill both of you with His covering. Blessings and hugs!
I’m sorry that this post is so long. But this “laying down your Isaac” story touched a landmine.
I feel like it’s harder to discern whether I’m being asked to sacrifice the precious thing, to continue in the same long direction while bearing it onward, or whether I’m simply bid to wait quietly and hold onto it.
Yes, I pray, fast, read God’s Word and seek godly counsel. What they forget to mention in theology and ministry training is that you can do all that and still sometimes have a precious burden that you don’t know what to do with.
It’s that unknown space fraught with frustration that’s harder for me than sacrifice. I have felt relief when the certainty comes that I have to let go, even when it’s hard.
I find comfort in John the Baptist’s story. Even this beautiful, strong man, Jesus’ womb-kindred cousin and divine, prophetic herald- even John struggled with doubt.
He was in a place where nothing made earthly sense. Yet not even a rugged ministry “cut short” by an ignoble, undeserved death could stop Heaven’s power.
John’s obedience was perfected in God’s greater purpose, even when he was unsure of whether he was on the right track to begin with. Even when in doubt, John showed wisdom in asking about Jesus, and not about himself. Despite the dungeon, he was focused on the Kingdom of God. Reassurance was the response he received. (Luke 7:18-23)
As Isaiah said, “a bruised reed He will not break, a smoldering wick He’ll not snuff out, till He has brought justice to victory. In His Name all the nations will put their hope.”
Our frail, fragile faith walk is always meant to be part of The Greatest Story. Of course we won’t understand as we surrender, and even sacrifice.
If John the Baptist had questions for Jesus at the end of his earthly ministry, how much more so will we, in our weakness? We walk by faith, not sight.
“Little ones to Him belong; we are weak, but He is strong. Yes, Jesus loves me; yes, Jesus loves me. Yes! Jesus loves me- the Bible tells me so.”
Dear Jennifer, in your wrestling may you find yourself closer than ever to your precious Savior … and in the process may you hear His peace-filled tender whisper saying, ‘This is the way, walk ye in it.’
Praying for you even as I tap away on the keyboard.
I hear the wondering and struggle in your words. I find your thoughts and questions to be ones that also make their way into my own life. I appreciate your willingness to share so openly and to join us here today at #TellHisStory.
Do we all have that fix it mentality even as believers? Yes, lay it down and receive His peace. It was ram in the thicket, but God provided the Lamb.
Yep, Rebecca, I’m guessing that more of us have that fix it mentality than we like to admit … although I’d like to think men are more inclined in that direction than women!
* smile *
I know I have a fix it mentality. It is an area that God continues to work on with me. Good to see you here today.
Thanks so much for this reminder, Linda. Knowing that we can trust God makes this matter of surrendering to Him somewhat easier, I think. Many blessings to you!
Yes, you’re right, I think we do know we can trust God, Boma. Maybe it’s simply a matter of obedience …
Trusting God does make the process easier. Blessed you stopped by today.
It’s lovely to see your words here today, Linda! And thanks, Mary, for hosting! This is such a powerful post. It is so hard to lay down those dreams and desires and to let go of control, but the peace God gives us when we manage to do it is amazing. This is the third post I’ve read today about giving up control so I think God wants me to pay attention to this today!
Don’t you just love when the Lord confirms something sweet or necessary in our lives?! Giving up control is a huge invitation to trust Him with greater abandon … and who knows what we missed along the way because we were reluctant to give Him complete control …
Linda’s words are perfect for me today and it sounds like they spoke to you too. I wonder what God has in store for you through this message of surrender.
Oh my, Linda! You are so speaking to my situation with needle-like precision! I’ve been asking the Lord for something that He has yet to give to me. In the waiting, I’ve discovered so many lessons I would have missed had He given me what I wanted right off the bat! And I’m still not sure He wants to give this elusive request to me or simply have me lay it on the altar without a sacrificial ram in the thicket. I wait and trust, while busying myself with the answers and abilities He gives me each day and moment. Thank you and Mary for sharing your own story of waiting and trusting! It helps to know I’m not the only one with issues like these! 😉 Hugs to both of you from afar!
You make a great point about the many lessons and graces God wants to gift us with in the waiting room, Beth … even though it’s hardly our favorite place to be … and there’s no rams or thickets to be found. Praying for you as you wait, trust, and listen, friend.
You are in good company, Beth. I’m also in a season of waiting but am holding onto the gift of God’s presence through it all. Praying for you as you seek answers.
Linda, thank you for your wise counsel. So often I find I’m holding onto an Isaac without really realizing my struggle for control for what it is. As a long-time blogger, my writing life is definitely an Isaac. But I want what He wants more than I want.
I absolutely hear you about the writing life, Jerralea. Without a doubt…
I also hold onto my Isaac longer than necessary. I begin to feel comfortable and forget how God wants me to surrender to continue to grow with Him.
So nice to see you both in this lovely space 🙂
This —> ” I’ve been in process of releasing all kinds of stuff that was never mine to own. Difficult family situations that I desperately wanted to fix. Carefully planned agendas and big dreams that I figured I could somehow make happen. My own hard-earned opinions and a few relationships that weren’t all that good for me. ”
I found myself nodding along. There are so many things I long to fix, control, wrestle into my way of doing things. But God always has better plans.
When it feels like He’s ripping something from my grasp it’s usually a clue I’m holding on to something that I shouldn’t be.
Thanks so much for sharing your heart, Linda and your space, Mary!
Ain’t this the truth, Becky –> ‘When it feels like He’s ripping something from my grasp it’s usually a clue I’m holding on to something that I shouldn’t be.’
Talk about a clue, yes?!
Oh Linda, this is so powerful. I, too, often can’t imagine what it must have been for both Abraham and Isaac. I read this earlier, and I needed to process it more before reading it again and responding. As I read it, God convicted me, “Oh My child, give up your Isaacs!” I have so many of them. So many heart-wrenching scenarios and deeply felt and unmet yearnings. I’m letting them consume the deepest parts of who I am and dethroning God from His rightful #1 place. It’s so hard to do, because I don’t understand. This past week, it’s this chronic illness and all its limitations and dream-stealing that is consuming me. I have to realize I don’t need to understand. I just need to hold His hand. It touches me deeply to grasp that He says, “‘thank you, I know this meant so much to you! Don’t worry, I’ve got this, I promise.” I’m sure grateful that God is so patient with me! I’m so sorry for all you have had to release lately, Linda. I have sensed there are some heavy burdens weighing on you. Thank you so much for sharing this, even though it was hard to write. And thank you, Mary, for inviting Linda to post this. I love both of your blogs. Love and blessings to you both!
Yes, we are all wounded and broken in one way or another, aren’t we, Trudy. And we find ourselves in very good company with other kindred spirits even though they might not know chapter and verse of our own personal experiences …
Oh, Mary, I needed to read this TODAY. There is a difficult family situation I have been brooding over for a while. “For some time, I’ve been in process of releasing all kinds of stuff that was never mine to own”. This sentence was written just for me! Thank you.
Family situations are some of the most difficult Isaacs to lay down, aren’t they, Laurie. For we love strongly, deeply, fiercely … like mother bears.
Standing with you as you spend time learning how God wants to use you in this season. Thank you for sharing and being here.
Wow, Linda, this made me sit up and take extra notice of what I might be holding onto that keeps me from a full relationship with the Lord. I’m going to ponder this seriously, that I might lay my Isaac down.
Thanks for hosting Linda here, Mary!
Blessings!
We could all do well in ‘taking extra notice,’ dear Martha. Thanks for that needed nudge to be a more faithful listener…
Having Linda here is a blessing and honor. Her words never fail to teach and encourage me.
Wow. The timing of this post could not be more perfect. I was literally just spending some time in prayer, expressing my grief to the Lord over all the dreams I’ve had to lay down. Thank You for walking in obedience and writing about this topic. I needed to read it.
Your kind words have confirmed what I knew to be true, Jana … I’m not the only one. I praise God for His timing of our conversation.
I love God’s perfect timing. Praying for you as you walk this road of laying down and letting God.
Mary, you chose well with inviting Linda to share here today. I too count her as a long distance internet friend. This post speaks to us all I think. It can be so easy to surrender something and be going along and then discover there is something else to surrender. Sometimes when I am standing in worship with my hands raised and open I am reminded that my walk with the Lord is to be that way ALL the time…my hands open and holding on to nothing save Him and Him alone. I am grateful He is patient in helping me loosen my grip on things, people, and situations I did not know I was holding so tightly.
Pam, you’re so right … there’s always more to be considered, to be released, to loosen our ironclad grip from. Indeed, He is a patient, loving Father.
Linda’s words are a blessing to many. I am also thankful that God eases me into complete surrender and gently shows me His goodness in the process. Thank you for being here.
Hmm. I’m the only guy here commenting. Don’t stone me ladies!! 🙂 Wonderful adaptation of Isaac’s story Linda. Your very first one got my thoughts: I can’t even imagine. I have two grown daughters and the thought of losing either-then or now- is heart-wrenching.
No rocks to throw around here, Bill! And for sure, if we bring this story into our generation, it is impossibly difficult to fathom
…
I am blessed you joined us here today, Bill. I also can’t imagine this story playing out with either of my two sons.
Mary, thank you so much for giving Linda the floor today … her gentle wisdom is always a gift. And Linda … dear friend, it’s not often that one phrase brings me to tears every time I read it, but it’s happening with your description of God’s peace as “His way of saying, ‘thank you, I know this meant so much to you!” What a comfort to remember that our heavenly Father knows how much these things and people mean to us and understands how much it hurts for us let them go (either all at once or slowly and painfully).
Oh yes, dear Lois … He certainly knows how deeply painful it is when we finally open our weary, grasping hands and let go. He weeps with us, doesn’t He …
You’re welcome! It’s a pleasure to share this space with someone I hold dear in this online world. And words don’t do justice in describing the deep love of our Father.
Thank you, Mary, for opening the door to the voices of friends.
Linda, I could hear your voice coming through these words on my screen. The struggle is very real, and our Isaac’s become more precious the longer we hold onto them.
Lord, give us courage to offer up our idols to you in faith that there’s a ram somewhere nearby, and that you’ve got our best interest at heart.
Oh Michele, this right here –> ‘our Isaac’s become more precious the longer we hold onto them.’
No truer words were spoken …
Amen. And I hear Linda’s voice in her precious words of wisdom too.
Thank you, Linda, for this wonderfully open, honest, and transparent post. I have been so moved by Joni Eareckson Tada’s prayer – “God, I turn today over in my hands and ask you to help me to pay attention to what you have for me in it, not for the future but for right now.” I’m thinking “today” is my Isaac–I am asking God to help me pay attention to the “precious present” since it is all we really have. I recently have had three friends close to my age suddenly step out of time and into eternity with no previous health conditions. Makes me so aware of how our Heavenly Father is the giver of every good and perfect gift–our next breath, our next heart beat, and our eternal life with Him. Truly, all is grace. Many blessings to you, friend!
Oh Beth, I am so very sorry for these stunning, sudden losses. I’m praying for you even as we speak …
I am praying for you as you seek to live in the “precious present”. Thank you for sharing so openly.
Thank you, Linda. We’re so prone to make even God’s blessings and opportunities into idols. Sometimes we feel it’s a hard thing to be asked to lay them down, but really it’s a mercy to have that opportunity to place everything back into God’s hands and realize they are His, not ours to grasp and cling to. We only cling to Him, and in Him, have everything we need.
I had some intense struggles the last couple of years with my writing – feeling all my life that it was something God wanted me to do, yet just at the time when I meant to pull it to the forefront, it seemed to be squeezed out by other God-ordained responsibilities, like caregiving. I was confused – “Did I misread your will for my life? Is this just my ambition and not your leading? If it’s something You want me to go, please make a way.” I didn’t realize it at the time, but reading you post makes me see it was an “Isaac” experience. My writing could never be what God wanted it to be unless laid at His feet. And when it’s laid there, I don’t have to fret or manipulate. I can trust His for the time and means as well as the words.
Thank you, Mary, For sharing your space with Linda.
Barbara, yes! And as we realize that there’s no need to ‘fret or manipulate’ {those 2 huge, cumbersome energy drainers}, He gives us the joyful ability to focus on what matters most, what’s right in front of us.
Thank you for sharing part of your own Isaac experience. Writing is an area that is the first to arrive and first to leave in my life. It’s hard to explain but God is in control of what my writing life looks like. Your words helped me to understand my own writing journey.
Thanks for sharing Linda’s words here, Mary.
Linda, what a beautiful post. I find that there are lots of things that I allow to become an Isaac in my life. It’s a constant battle to remember God is God in my life. And that He wants to hold that number one place in my heart. The call to obedience to lay other things down when He asks can be difficult, but it’s always the best action. You’ve got me thinking this morning, friend. Thank you.
You’re so right, Jeanne. There have been far too many Isaacs along the way for most of us …
You’re welcome! Linda’s words put me in a place of reflection too. I am realizing there are several things that I need to lay down to honor God ore completely.
Thank you, Mary and Linda, for this post. May I be willing to lay everything down so that the only One I cling to is Jesus. Blessings!
What a powerful benediction you’ve given us, Joanne …
Jesus only.
Praying with you, Joanne. Jesus, only Jesus! Blessings on your day.
Thank you Mary for hosting Linda. Linda, your words are wonderful encouragement to lay down not only our ideas but our idols. May God bless you both today. In Christ, Julie
‘Not only our ideas but our idols.’
Love how you’ve phrased it, Julie …
Linda’s words have given me a lot to think about. Blessings to you today, Julie!