The Power of Surrender: Finding Strength in Letting Go
In my last blog post, I shared the importance of having an anchor for the year ahead—whether it's a word, a mantra, or something else entirely. These anchors ground us and guide our choices through life's inevitable storms of urgency and overwhelm. Without such a foundational touchstone, we often find ourselves making decisions that merely relieve immediate stress, rather than aligning with our deeper values and desires.
For 2025, my word/anchor is SURRENDER.
When you hear the word "surrender," what comes to mind? A white flag waving in defeat? Giving up in the face of challenge? That's not the kind of surrender I'm embracing.
This surrender is about releasing what doesn't serve me. It's about putting down the heavy burden of trying to control everything and everyone. It's about trusting in something greater than myself—whether that's God, the natural flow of the universe, or the inherent wisdom of those around me.
But surrender goes even deeper than this. It's about releasing the exhausting position of trying to be the manager of everyone and everything. It's about understanding that when I let go of perfect control, I create space for something more valuable: authentic relationships, genuine growth, and sustainable peace.
As a parent, this means surrendering the impulse to shield my teenagers from every potential mistake. Instead, I'm learning to trust that natural consequences are often the greatest teachers. When I step back and allow them to navigate their own paths (while remaining a loving, supportive presence), I'm not giving up on parenting—I'm actually parenting more wisely.
In my daily life, this surrender looks like releasing the notion that every item on my to-do list must be checked off, that my home must be in perfect order by day's end. This isn't about throwing in the towel on organization or responsibility. Rather, it's about consciously choosing where to direct my energy, understanding that by letting go of perfection, I create space for what truly matters.
There's a beautiful paradox in this kind of surrender: by letting go, we often gain something far more valuable. When we surrender the need to control everything, we free up energy for the things that truly matter. When we release the burden of carrying everything for everyone, we actually become stronger, more present, and more effective in the ways that count.
This is the power of surrender—not as an act of weakness, but as a conscious choice to trust, to flow, to release what doesn't serve us. It's about being softer yet stronger, more flexible yet more resilient. It's about understanding that sometimes, the most powerful thing we can do is simply let go.
As we move through 2025, I invite you to consider:
What might you gain by surrendering? What burdens could you put down? What space might you create by letting go?
Remember, surrender isn't about giving up—it's about opening up to something greater than ourselves. It's about trusting that when we loosen our grip on how everything "should" be, we create space for how things could be. Sometimes the most empowering choice we can make is simply to let go, trust, and allow ourselves to be carried by something bigger than our own plans and expectations. 💫