Let Go: God Can Do it Better Than You

You've heard the saying: "Let go and let God." It sounds spiritual. It sounds nice. But if you're like most people, you have no idea what that actually means when you're holding something that matters—a relationship you've poured yourself into, a dream you've been chasing, a job you've built, finances you've worked hard to accumulate. How do you just "let it go"? What does surrender actually look like when you're terrified of what happens if you release your grip?

The story of Moses' mother in Exodus 2:1-10 shows us exactly what happens when we choose to surrender what we're holding onto. But more importantly, it shows us what God does when we finally trust Him enough to let go. This isn't just a historical account—it's a blueprint for how God works in your life when you're willing to release control.

The Cost of Holding On

Let's start at the beginning of Moses' story. Exodus 2:1-2 tells us: "During this time, a man and woman from the tribe of Levi got married. The woman became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She saw that he was a healthy, fine baby and she kept him hidden for three months" (NLT).

But here’s the context that makes this story heartbreaking: during this time, Israel had grown too large. The Hebrew people were multiplying and becoming more numerous, and Pharaoh saw them as a threat. So in Chapter 1, he issued a brutal decree—every newborn Hebrew boy was to be killed. Pharaoh wanted to control the population of the Israelites through infanticide. It was an act of pure cruelty and genocide. So when this mother gave birth to her son, she wasn’t just bringing new life into the world. She was bringing a life that the most powerful man in Egypt had ordered to be destroyed.

Take a moment and really imagine that. A time that was meant for joy and celebration—bringing new life into the world, stepping into motherhood—was instead turned into a time where everything had to be hidden. Where everything had to be secret. While she’s trying to care for her son and be a mother, she’s filled with anxiety. Every moment, she’s thinking: what if somebody saw him? What if they discovered him? They could take him. They could kill him. She’s probably not sleeping, barely eating. Every single day she’s consumed with worry, always crying, always on edge, trying to protect in her own strength the very thing she desired most—her son, her identity as a mother.

And here’s the truth: this is exactly what happens when we hold on to things that God is calling us to let go of. We don’t experience peace. We experience the opposite. We’re anxious. We’re stressed. We’re exhausted. We’re full of fear.

Maybe God is calling you to let go of a relationship that He's telling you to surrender. Maybe it's a job that's keeping you from His calling. Maybe it's financial security you're clinging to instead of trusting His provision. Maybe it's a dream or a desire that you've been grinding toward in your own strength instead of waiting on God's timing. Whatever it is, when you're holding on to something God's calling you to release, you can't fully enjoy it. You can't experience the peace that comes with obedience. You're living in a constant state of anxiety, trying to maintain control, trying to protect what you don't want to lose.

The weight of holding on is exhausting. And the more you invest in something—the more time, energy, tears, and sacrifice you've poured into it—the harder it becomes to let go. Moses' mother had carried this child for nine months. She had given her body to bring him into the world. She had invested everything into his life. And now she was supposed to let him go? The cost of releasing him felt unbearable.

The obstacle isn’t God. The obstacle is our lack of faith that He can do it better.

The Moment of Surrender

But then something shifted. Her mother's love for her son couldn't shield him from the danger he was in. Her protection couldn't save him from Pharaoh's decree. She realized that holding on wasn't keeping him safe—it was just keeping her from experiencing peace. So she made the hardest choice of her life.

Exodus 2:3 says: "But when she could no longer hide him, she got a basket made of papyrus reeds and waterproofed it with tar and pitch. She put the baby in the basket and laid it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile River" (NLT).

She let him go.

She placed her son—the child she had carried, the baby she had hidden, the infant she loved with every fiber of her being—into a basket and released him to the river. She had to trust that God would do what she couldn't do. She had to believe that releasing him to God's hands was better than holding him in her own.

This took extraordinary faith. This took a level of trust that most of us can barely comprehend. But she did it. She released what she wanted most. She surrendered her son to God, trusting that He would protect him, care for him, and do something with his life that she never could.

Now, I get it. We can’t even imagine the faith it took for a mother to let go of her child. But what about you? What if God is asking you to let go of a job that provides you financial security? What if He’s asking you to release a relationship you’ve been in for years? What if He’s calling you to surrender a dream you’ve been grinding toward since you were a child—a desire you’ve carried in your heart for decades? Those things take faith too. Real faith. Difficult faith. And if she could do it, so can you. Because that’s where God really starts to move. That’s where the supernatural happens. That’s where He steps in and does what you never could on your own.

What God Does When You Let Go

What happens next is where the real miracle unfolds. Verses 4-10 tell us what happened after she let her son go:

"The baby's sister then stood at a distance, watching to see what would happen to him. Soon Pharaoh's daughter went down to the river to bathe and her attendants walked along the riverbank. When the princess saw the basket among the reeds, she had her attendant retrieve it for her. When she opened it, she saw the baby. The little boy was crying, and she felt compassion for him. 'This must be one of the Hebrew babies,' she said.

Then the baby's sister approached the princess. 'Should I go and find one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?' she asked.

'Yes, do!' the princess replied. So the girl went and called the baby's mother. The princess said to the mother, 'Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you for your work.' So the woman took her baby back to nurse him.

Later, when the boy was older, his mother brought him back to Pharaoh's daughter, who adopted him as her own son. The princess named him Moses, for she said, 'I lifted him out of the water'" (NLT).

Do you see what God did? Not only did He return her son to her—He returned him in a way she never could have orchestrated or imagined. When she let go, her son was placed directly in the hands of Pharaoh's daughter. And what did that mean? It meant that Moses would be raised in Pharaoh's palace. He would receive an education that no Hebrew slave could ever receive. He would have access and authority that would eventually allow him to lead God's people out of Egypt.

But even more beautiful—God brought her son back to her. And not only that, he paid her to be his mother. The very thing she had sacrificed—her ability to mother him openly—was now restored to her, and she was compensated for it. She got to nurture her son in the open. She got to watch him grow. She got to experience the joy of motherhood that had been stolen from her during those three months of hiding. And she got to do it with financial security and peace.

When she released her son, she didn't lose him. She gained him back in a way that was infinitely better. She was no longer stressed and anxious. She was at peace. She was safe. She was cared for. And her son was positioned to become one of the greatest deliverers in biblical history.

This is what happens when we surrender to God. When we let go of what we're holding onto—not out of indifference, but out of faith—God doesn't take it away to hurt us. He takes it to transform it. He takes it to position it and us for something far greater than we could have done on our own.

The Hidden Potential of Surrender

Here's the truth that most of us miss: when we hold on to something that God is calling us to release, we're not actually protecting it. We're limiting it. We're capping its potential at what we alone can accomplish. We're trying to provide for it, care for it, and direct it with our limited resources and understanding.

But when we release it to God, we're opening it up to His unlimited resources, His infinite wisdom, and His perfect plan. God can do infinitely more with what we surrender than we could ever do with what we cling to (Ephesians 3:30)

Maybe you've been holding onto a dream, convinced that if you don't push it forward, it will never happen. But what if God is waiting for you to release it so He can open doors you didn't even know existed? Maybe you've been holding onto a relationship, terrified that if you let it go, you'll be alone. But what if God is waiting to restore it to you in a healthier, more authentic way—or to bring something even better into your life? Maybe you've been grinding toward financial security, convinced that your own effort is the only thing protecting you. But what if God is waiting for you to trust His provision so He can show you provision that goes beyond what you could earn on your own?

God isn’t the problem. Your belief that you alone can handle this better than He can—that’s the wall standing between you and what He wants to do.

 

When Desire Becomes Idolatry

Here's what Moses' mother understood, even if she didn't have words for it: there is nothing wrong with having desires. There is nothing wrong with wanting things. There is nothing wrong with loving your child, caring about your future, hoping for your dreams to come true. These aren't sinful things. These are human things. God gives us desires. He plants dreams in our hearts. He doesn't call us to not want anything.

The problem comes when we love these things more than we love God. When we desire these things more than we desire obedience to Him. When we're willing to break His will, ignore His leading, and compromise our faith in order to hold onto what we want.

That's when desire becomes idolatry.

Moses' mother didn't love her son more than she loved God. And that's what made the difference. It's what gave her the strength to do the hardest thing—to let him go. She chose obedience to God over the temporary comfort of holding onto her son. And because of that choice, she got him back, and he got a destiny that changed history.

 

The Peace on the Other Side of Surrender

The bottom line is this: when you hold on to what God is calling you to release, you live in stress, anxiety, and a constant state of fighting to maintain control. You can't sleep. You can't eat. You can't experience peace because you're always afraid of losing what you're clinging to.

But when you surrender—when you release it to God and trust Him with the outcome—you experience peace. You step out of the driver's seat and into the passenger seat, trusting that God knows the route better than you do. And most of the time, He doesn't take what you surrender away. He returns it to you in a way that's better, stronger, and more blessed than you could have ever created on your own.

God isn't asking you to let go of what you love so He can punish you. He's asking you to let go so He can show you what He can do with it. He's asking you to trust Him not because He's going to take it away forever, but because He's going to transform it into something you never imagined.

Your job is to decide: do you love what you're holding onto more than you love God? Or are you willing to release it and trust that whatever happens on the other side of surrender will be better than what you could create by holding on?

 

Reflection Questions

Take some time to sit with these questions. Don’t rush through them. Let them dig into your heart.

1. What is one thing in your life right now that you’re struggling to let go of? Why are you holding on so tightly?
2. When you think about Moses’ mother’s faith—her willingness to release her son—what does that stir in you? What would it look like for you to have that same level of trust in God?
3. If you were to surrender what you’re holding onto right now, what are you most afraid might happen? And how might God surprise you if you trusted Him anyway?

 

Take a Moment and Reflect

To end this message, I want to suggest that you take some time this week and watch the sermon. It teaches you the power of saying yes to God and what that actually looks like. It shows you what it means to surrender—even when surrender means losing what you think you need to keep. It reveals both the cost of letting go and the gain that comes when you do. You'll see the real sacrifice involved, but more importantly, you'll see what God does on the other side of that surrender. Take notes. Let it sink in. And then implement what you learn into your daily life.

Your Challenge This Week

This week, I want you to acknowledge one thing in your life that you’re struggling to let go of. Name it. Be honest about it. And then, every single day this week, I want you to pray a prayer of surrender. Ask God to give you the strength to let it go. Because if you ask Him, He will.

 

Prayer

"Father God, thank you for being the I Am, the great I Am, Yahweh. Thank you for always being by my side and having a plan and a purpose for my life and never leaving me alone.

God, forgive me for my strong grip on life. Today, I repent of my inability to bring my problems, my circumstances, my situations, my desires, and my dreams into the palm of your hand.

Moving forward, I pray that you give me the strength to walk in faith and obedience as I let you handle everything in my life. Help me to keep my eyes focused on you and trust that you can do it better than me. Amen."