I Can’t, But God Can: Retreat Reflections

I Can’t, But God Can: Retreat Reflections 

This week, I had the beautiful opportunity to step away from the demands of life and spend three days on retreat with London Division. If I’m honest, I wasn’t looking forward to going away—I struggled with the thought of leaving my children, stepping back from responsibilities, and being away from everything familiar. But now, looking back, I’m glad I went. An extra ‘thank you’ to my parents for making this possible by taking on childcare responsibilities.

In the moments of retreat, God spoke. God reminded me of the following:
I can’t, but God can.
I am because God is.
I must be.
Stop doing so much.
Start being more.

These words spoke to me. I often find myself doing more, fixing more, trying harder, and carrying ‘stuff’ that isn’t mine to carry. But what if I stopped trying to do it all and simply rested in God’s presence? What if I leaned fully into who God is instead of what I can accomplish?

Howard Davies penned these words:
“Higher than the stars that reach eternity,
Broader than the boundaries of endless space,
Is the boundless love of God that pardoned me;
O the wonder of His grace!”

The boundless love and grace of God—higher than the stars, broader than endless space—covers even me. What a powerful image that is. The vastness and greatness. A sinner. A failure. A messed-up human being. Living in the midst of pain. Living in the midst of the messiness of life. And yet, God’s grace reaches me. Even me!

This is why I must be. Not do more. Not achieve more. Not prove more. Just be. Be present in God’s love. Be found in God’s grace. Be still and know that He is God.

So today, I choose to stop striving and start trusting. To stop doing so much and start being more. Because in the end, I can’t—but God can. And that is more than enough.

Thank God for that!

Here’s a beautiful arrangement of the words I’ve mentioned. Have a listen and take some time to be still…

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