The great enemy of the life of faith in God is not sin,
but the good which is not good enough. (1)
Last evening I told a group of friends, “Today may go down as the most significant day in my journey of faith!”
They asked for more information. I told them it was too much to try to explain in a minute or two, much less in an hour or two.
For years I have been wrestling with a good which was not good enough. For years I had been longing for this good to quench my thirst and to satisfy my heart. It always left me wanting. It never brought me to The Promised Land which it promised.
Yesterday I finally let go of this good. I did not free it as much as I freed myself.
My grasping to the good, my longing for it to satisfy and become great, perfect, and true has been the enemy of my faith for decades.
Today I am free. Today I am at peace.
The good was a false hope in something to satisfy all the hopes and dreams of my heart.
Even though you are longing to know what the good was, it does not matter.
It was the good to which I clung and in which I hoped. It was the good which kept me from grabbing onto God with both hands. It was the good which prevented me from loving the Lord my God with all of my heart, and soul, and strength. (2)
Martin Luther in his great hymn, A Mighty Fortress, (a favorite since my childhood) wrote:
Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also; the body they may kill; God’s truth abideth still; his kingdom is forever.
A few years ago I began to recognize the bruise, the rotten spot of the good to which I had clung. But I kept to the hope that with TLC, with effort, and with some buff and polish I could help remove the bruise, the spoiled rotten mark which infected this good.
Yesterday, I realized that the spoiled rotten bruise is here to stay, much like a birthmark. I can cover it with beautiful clothing, with the best beauty cream and make-up, and with denial, but the birthmark will remain.
I am grateful I finally accepted this reality because I am free from the good which was never going to be good enough.
My soul is no longer troubled.
My faith in God is no longer divided between Him and this good.
Jesus said:
“Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (3)
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Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest : Selections for the Year (Grand Rapids, MI: Discovery House Publishers, 1993).
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Deuteronomy 6:5
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The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001), John 4:14.
Bread Crumbs - Devotions for Life 
could I suggest that you didn’t let the good go – you gave it a hug and loved it? That action allowed you to set it free.
Yes, you may suggest that I hugged it and let it go gently, but I would have to disagree. I cut it loose and said, “Good riddance!” I let go and sent the “good” go kicking and screaming all the way. Then the peace came. False hopes in the world’s goods, despite their beauty, appeal, and attraction, always weigh us down. I am free, relieved,and at peace. I am no longer in bondage.
that is so awesome! ptl