To cut or not to cut, that is the question. I’ve been going back and forth about it in my head for a couple of months. I’ve had a love/hate relationship with my hair for quite some time now. Some days, I love it; others, not so much. Lately, though, it seems that my love for my locks has waxed cold. A few months ago it was healthy, growing, and full of body, but after allowing myself to stress while in the middle of a tough season, I’ve caused a lot of damage to it. Now, there’s a lot of dead, broken ends, and its growth is at a standstill.
I’m also noticing that the damaged areas are beginning to affect the healthier areas, causing breakage. If I don’t do something about it soon, I’ll probably cause more problems than necessary. As someone who wore short cuts for years and loved it, you’d think I’d have no qualms about chopping my locks again. But for some reason, I’m having a hard time letting go. Even though I know that the longer I ignore the damaged areas, the more I’m putting my entire head of hair at risk of dying, I’m holding on simply because I’m attached to it. I’ve been growing it out for years, with a trim here and there, and I’m afraid that once I cut it off I’ll miss it too much and want it back.
I really need to let this dead hair go and give my locks a new chance at life.
Can’t it be like that sometimes in life? You know there’s something that you need to let go because it’s causing more harm than good, but because you’re so attached to it and comfortable with it, or it’s been around for so long, you’re too afraid to let it go. So you’d rather take the risk of holding on to it than face the fear or possible regret of cutting it out of your life.
Does that sound familiar? I’ve definitely been there, in relationships, habits, and in sin. There have been times in my life when I knew certain people and things were dead weight and were hindering my growth, but attachment to familiarity made it hard for me to let go.
There was this guy I dated once who I knew I needed to cut away from my life. He was such a dead weight to my spiritual growth. Time spent with him always left me feeling spiritually lifeless and threatened to pull me completely away from God. My attachment to him stalled my growth in Christ, but I just couldn’t muster up the courage to let him go. Although I knew that I’d probably eventually reach my maximum number of God-I’m-sorry-I-won’t-do-it-again prayers, I just wasn’t sure if I’d like life without him. I wasn’t sure that, after I’d made the decision to cut him off, I’d be happy with the outcome.
But you know what? Once I finally chose to let him go, I felt so much lighter. In the beginning, it was different to be without something that I’d grown so attached to. Once I grew accustomed to the change, however, I was able to heal in places where I was damaged, and grow in areas where I’d become stagnant.
Cutting him off was one of the best choices I ever made.
What is it in your life that you need to cut away? What’s that thing, person, habit, or guilty pleasure that is causing damage to your growth, whether naturally or spiritually? Why are you so afraid to let it go?
With the new season of Spring upon us and in the spirit of spring cleaning, I think it’s a perfect time to look within at those places in your heart, mind, and spirit, and cut away anything that’s causing damage to your progress in life. Throw out those things that are taking up space, but are not beneficial to your growth.
If it’s slowing you down, cut it off.
If it’s depressing your spirit, cut it off.
If it’s hindering you from progressing in purpose, cut it off.
If it’s bringing out the worst in you, cut it off.
If it’s contradictory to God’s word, cut it off.
If it’s not conducive to you becoming the woman God created you to be, cut it off.
It may not be easy, but you can do all things through Christ’s strength (Philippians 4:13). Granted, there are some things and people you can’t simply dismiss from your life. In such cases, seek the Lord for wisdom on how to nurse those damaged areas back to health.
As Hebrews 11:1 says, “…let us strip off every weight that slows us down.”
It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been attached to it, if it’s producing stagnation in your life or hindering you from walking circumspectly to God’s Word, and you have the power to change it, it needs to go.
As for me, I’ll be making a visit to the salon very soon. Scissors, please.
Tell me, what do you need to snip away in order to see more health and growth in your life?