Hi ,

“For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” (Matthew 16:25) 

One of the funniest, yet tragic, stories I have heard is of how monkeys are trapped in Africa. 

The story goes that a coconut is hollowed out and chained to a pole, leaving a hole just large enough for a monkey to put its hand into. Some food is placed in the coconut and then the trappers wait. 

When a monkey comes along, it sticks its hand in the hole and grabs the food and tries to run away. That’s when the monkey starts to panic. With its hand full of food it’s too big to pull out of the hole. The monkey is trapped. All it needs to do is let go of the food and it can be free, but the monkey wants that food! Even when the trapper comes and catches it, the monkey won’t let go. It is trapped by its own greed. 

Matthew 16:25 warns, “...whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” 

Far too often we cling to the things of this world, whether it be money, sex, drugs, pride, appetite, or a hundred other things. We are trapped by our own greed. If we would just let go, we could be free, but it is so hard to let go! We want those things so bad! 

Jesus said in John 10:10, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” But we cannot have this rich and abundant life he wants for us as long as we cling to the things of this life. It is only by letting go, by losing the life we think we want, that we can find true life, a life that will never end. 

What are you holding on to today? Let go! Let go and grasp the life Jesus offers so freely to each and every one of us. Let go and grab Jesus’ hand instead and never, ever let it go! That’s the only way to be truly free.

(The above was written and kindly shared by Rich Edison)