Navigating (unwelcome) transitions
1. Naming What Is: Being Honest Before God
Uncertainty can be unsettling, but it also opens up space for deeper honesty. Before rushing to fix or plan, take time to name what is truly happening—and to bring that into the presence of God, who welcomes truth without judgment.
“Search me, God, and know my heart... See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
— Psalm 139:23–24“Be still, and know that I Am God”
— Psalm 46:10
This stillness isn’t passive; it’s a posture of trust, a pause to remember that God is in control, He is present and at work, even when the way ahead feels hidden.
Reflection Practice: The Unfolding Landscape
Draw a page with three headings:
What is ending
What is uncertain
What is continuing
Write freely under each. Let your words be raw if they need to be. Then take a moment to sit with what you’ve written, bringing it prayerfully to God.
What surprises you?
What brings sadness, or relief?
What might God be inviting you to grieve… or to entrust?
Naming the truth can become an act of surrender and trust.
2. Who Am I Without the Role?
Leadership often becomes woven into how we see ourselves. When that shifts, it can feel disorienting. But your identity is not found in your role—it is grounded in Christ.
“For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and in Christ you have been brought to fullness.”
— Colossians 2:9–10“For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.”
— Colossians 3:3
Journal Prompt:
Who am I when I’m not leading others?
What has God placed in me—gifts, values, desires—that remain, regardless of role or title?
Let this be a time of rediscovering your true identity: beloved, called, and held.
3. Practising Release: Making Room for What’s Next
Sometimes we hold tightly to control, clarity, or outcomes because we fear what life—or God—might look like without them. Yet Scripture continually reminds us of the freedom that comes from letting go.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding…”
— Proverbs 3:5
Reflection Practice: A Prayer or Statement of Release
Begin with the words:
Today, I release…
and finish the sentence as many times as needed.
For example:
I release the fear that I am only valuable when I’m producing.
I release the need to control the outcome.
I release the belief that God’s call depends on my title or what I “do”.
You might write these on slips of paper and place them in a bowl, envelope, or fire-safe container. You may wish to burn or bury them as a prayerful act of letting go.
4. Listening for What is Emerging
Transitions are not only about endings. They are also about the quiet beginnings we often overlook. Even when the path is unclear, God is still at work—shaping, inviting, renewing.
“See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?”
— Isaiah 43:19
Journal Prompt:
Set a timer for 10 minutes and write:
What might God be making possible in this space I didn’t choose?
Don’t rush it. Let the question rest in your heart. Over time, you may begin to notice quiet nudges, new longings, or a deepening sense of trust.
5. A Quiet Blessing for the Journey
Let this be a word of grace spoken over you, wherever you find yourself today:
May you be kind to what is ending.
May you be honest about what is uncertain.
May you be open to what God is gently unfolding.
You are not only the roles you have held.
You are a bearer of wisdom, courage, and grace.
This is not the end of your calling.
It may be the deepening of it.
“The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs… You will be like a well-watered garden.”
— Isaiah 58:11
You might return to these reflections more than once. Some seasons ask us to circle back—to listen again, to wait. Let this be one way of staying present to what God is doing in the silence, in the shifts, and in the in-between.
