Week 11: Chapter 10 — "The Joy of Letting Go"

1.Jesus says that "unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (John 12:24). How does Voskamp use this image to describe the movement from gratitude to trust to release? What is she being called to let go of in this chapter?

2.She describes the terror of loving fragile things — children, relationships, health — and the temptation to either hold them so tightly we smother them or to keep emotional distance to protect ourselves from loss. Which tendency do you lean toward? What drives it?

3.Paul writes, "I have learned, in whatever state I am, to be content" (Philippians 4:11). The word "learned" is important — contentment is a curriculum, not a character trait you either have or don't. What has been your experience of contentment as something learned rather than given?