Scripture: Mark 10:21–22
“Jesus looked at him and loved him. ‘One thing you lack,’ he said. ‘Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.’ At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.”
There’s a line in this story I can’t shake.
It’s not the part where the rich young man walks away—though that’s hard.
It’s not even the part where Jesus challenges him to give it all up.
It’s this: “Jesus looked at him and loved him.”
He looked.
He loved.
And he let him walk away.
Jesus didn’t chase after him.
Didn’t water down the ask.
Didn’t guilt-trip or beg.
He let him go.
And here’s where Mel Robbins offers some insight that stops me in my tracks:
“Let them. If someone wants to leave your life, let them. If someone is treating you poorly, let them. If someone is not showing up for you, let them.”
Sounds a lot like what Jesus did, doesn’t it?
Prior to thousands of dollars of therapy over a decade (and I’m not embarrassed to admit that), I was not great at “letting them.” (I still have some room to grow!) But – previously, not only would I NOT “let them” – I’d dig in and double down.
I loved people with strings attached—like little invisible “you better not disappoint me” threads. When someone pulled away, I reached harder. When someone stopped responding, I doubled down. Somewhere deep down, I thought if I just said the right words, showed enough patience, loved well enough, they’d change.They’d “want me.”
There was no “let them.” It was all about clinging.
Jesus loved that man and let him go.
There was no scrambling to hold on. No “well maybe if I had just…”
Because real love doesn’t require control.
And real peace? That shows up when we release what was never ours to carry in the first place.
As Mel Robbins puts it:
“Letting them is about allowing people the dignity of their own choices, while protecting your own peace.”
So this week, we’re stepping into a new journey—Let Them (and Let Me)—because the truth is, it’s not just about letting them go. It’s about letting us grow.
Let them misunderstand you.
Let them stay stuck.
Let them walk.
Let them say no.
Let them not be who you want them to be.
And in the letting…
Breathe.
Stop trying to manage things you were never meant to control.
Love without needing to fix.
Trust that what is meant for you won’t need to be wrestled into place.
Jesus let him go.
You can, too.
To Ponder:
Where in your life are you holding on too tightly to someone else’s choices, hoping they’ll change? What would it look like to let them—and in doing so, let yourself breathe again?
Grace and Peace,
Andrea