“I learned that dropping it doesn’t mean I have to stop carrying it.”
Greetings, Precious Family. May the Peace of the Lord be with you always.
Family,
Today is Day 271.
And perhaps the most honest thing I can say today is this:
I have not been as consistent as I intended to be.
There. I said it.
Sometimes we begin a journey with great intentions. We make commitments. We establish goals. We tell ourselves, This time, I am going to follow through.
And then life happens.
We become tired. We become distracted.
Something unexpected interrupts the plan.
Our bodies need rest. Our minds become overwhelmed. Our circumstances change. Sometimes we simply lose momentum.
And somewhere along the way, we look down and realize: I dropped the ball.
For some of us, that realization becomes the reason we stop altogether.
I missed too many days.
I got too far behind.
I should have done better.
I should be further along by now.
And shame begins whispering that because we were inconsistent, we might as well quit.
But Precious Family, I am learning something on this journey to wholeness:
Dropping it doesn’t mean I have to stop carrying it. I can pick it back up!!
There is a beautiful moment in Scripture when Peter asks Jesus how many times he should forgive someone who sins against him. Peter suggests seven times.
Matthew 18:21-22
New International Version
The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.[a]
We often read this passage in the context of forgiving other people.
But today, I wonder how many of us need enough grace to begin again?
How many times have you promised yourself you were going to change something?
How many times have you started praying again, exercising again, writing again, studying again, saving again, creating again, healing again, only to lose your rhythm somewhere along the way?
And how many times have you mistaken inconsistency for disqualification?
Maybe you dropped something you genuinely wanted to carry.
Pick it back up.
Maybe you stopped doing something God placed on your heart.
Pick it back up.
Maybe you were doing well and somehow lost your momentum.
Pick it back up.
Maybe you’re disappointed because you thought you would be further along by now.
Pick. It. Back. Up.
Wholeness is not always demonstrated by never stumbling.
Sometimes wholeness looks like developing the courage, humility, and grace to begin again.
The enemy would love for one missed day to become ten.
For ten missed days to become a month.
For a month to become a year.
And eventually, what began as an interruption becomes abandonment, not because we could not continue, but because shame convinced us that continuing no longer counted.
But grace says:
Come back.
Grace says:
There is still something worth carrying.
Grace says:
Yesterday’s inconsistency does not have to make today’s decision for you.
Precious Family, perhaps there is something lying on the ground beside you. not literally, but spiritually, emotionally, creatively, relationally.
Something you dropped.
Something you thought you had ruined.
Something you assumed you had waited too long to continue.
Before you walk away from it, ask God:
“Abba, is this something You still want me to carry?”
And if the answer is yes…
Bend down.
Pick it back up.
Adjust your grip.
And keep walking.
You don’t have to pretend you never dropped it.
You don’t have to erase the gap.
You don’t have to rewrite yesterday.
Just take the next faithful step today.
Because I am learning something here on Day 271:
I may have dropped the ball along the journey, but dropping it doesn’t mean I have to stop carrying it.
And neither do you.
Let Us Pray
Abba,
Thank You for meeting us in the places where we have fallen short of our own expectations.
Forgive us for the times we have allowed disappointment to become condemnation. Forgive us for believing that because we were inconsistent, we were no longer worthy of continuing.
Give us wisdom to know what You are still calling us to carry.
And when You tell us that the assignment is not finished, give us the courage to pick it back up.
Teach us that beginning again is not something to be ashamed of.
Thank You for grace that meets us today—not where we intended to be, not where we wish we were, but exactly where we are.
Help us take the next step.
And if we drop it again, Abba, remind us that Your grace will still be there, teaching us how to reach down, pick it up, and keep walking toward wholeness.
In the precious and powerful name of Christ Jesus. Amen, Amen and Amen.
Worship Song
You don’t have to go back and become the person who never dropped it.
Until we meet again, Precious Family, remember:
Just become the person who decided to pick it back up.
Keep walking.
The journey continues.
Rev. Marcia Davis, BA, MA
Covington, GA (USA)
