Are You a Kite or Balloon Christian?

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A woman was struggling with trusting God. Her children were grown and gone so far from the home that she could no longer watch over them as she once did. One of her sons was in the Armed Forces and she worried daily about his safety.

Her husband had been recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. She dwelt constantly on what the future held if he were to die and leave her alone to handle all of the bills and responsibilities. Will there be enough? Will the children take care of me? She was weighed down so much that the thoughts stole her sleep and at times, her appetite.

She was a Christian and loved God with all of her heart. She knew worry was a sin, but no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't seem to let go. All of her life she had been a "take charge" person, but now she realized that the weight of the situations that she could no longer fix were destroying her health and stealing her joy.

One day at the seashore, she watched children play along the beach. A kite was flying off in the distance, dancing in the wind with a happy youngster at the end of the string.

"That's it!" she said.

So she went out and bought a kite, and returned to the beach the next day. She prayed, naming all of her concerns out loud and "placed" them on the kite by faith. She then ran into the wind.

She watched gleefully as the kite sailed higher and higher as she let go of more string!

"Here, Lord", she whispered, "take from me what I cannot bear anymore." After a while, she reeled in the kite string and went about her daily routines. By nightfall, however, her anxious thoughts began to return and she tried to fight them off as best she could.

She returned to the beach days later with her kite, ready to try again. She felt so guilty for not being able to "let go". She hesitated, thinking of how silly she must look for actually going out and buying a kite at her age.

"Others can simply trust," she thought to herself. "Why can't I?"

Just then a child ran by with a large balloon. A gust of wind snatched the balloon so hard that the string slipped through the little girl's fingers. Up, Up it soared…so high that eventually it could no longer be seen.

God was listening to her after all! She suddenly realized that what she needed was not a kite, but a balloon. A kite was always under the control of the 'sender'. It could be reeled in and maneuvered at will. What she had to do, once and for all, was truly "LET GO"!

That afternoon, she brought back a beautiful balloon in her favorite color. She prayed again, and placed all of her frustrations, doubts, and worries symbolically onto that balloon.

Walking to the edge of the water, she took a deep breath, held it high, and then opened the hand that not only held a tight grip on the balloon, but was also once strong enough to hold together everything else in her life.

The balloon flew out of her hands! She cried as she watched it bounce to the heavens, knowing that even if she wanted to, she couldn't reach the string to get it back.

It didn't take long for the balloon to sail out of sight. She stood alone on the beach and waited. She didn’t feel any different, but somehow--deep inside--her faith held her steady.

Later on, she slept through the whole night. Over the next few days, she felt her joy returning. A song returned to her heart and her lips; God's Word began to burst forth with life inside of her!

Now, what about you? What worries are your facing?

Then, let me ask one more question: Do you pray at the end of a kite or a balloon?