Lately, I’ve found myself returning to a simple refrain from a Porter’s Gate song:
“You have given all to me;
To you, O Lord, I return it.
Everything I have is yours.
Do with it what you will.”
I’ve spent much of my life thinking about responsibility, leadership, goals, and outcomes. But recently, God has been teaching me something deeper: stewardship.
Not ownership. Stewardship.
It’s a subtle distinction with profound implications. Ownership says, this is mine to control. Stewardship says, this has been entrusted to me for a season.
My time. My talents. My career. My resources. My relationships. Even the opportunities and influence I’ve been given. None of it originated with me. All of it is a gift.
There is both freedom and weight in that realization.
Freedom because I no longer have to carry the burden of believing everything depends on me. Weight because I am accountable for how I care for what God has placed in my hands.
The line that continues to stay with me is:
“I lift it up. I lay it down.”
What a beautiful picture of surrender.
I lift it up in gratitude, acknowledging that every good thing comes from God. I lay it down in trust, recognizing that He has the right to direct, multiply, reshape, or even remove what He’s entrusted to me.
The older I get, the more I realize that faithful stewardship isn’t about building my kingdom. It’s about holding everything with open hands. Success, plans, accomplishments, dreams and even relationships all belong in those hands.
There is a deep peace that comes from praying, “Lord, everything I have is yours. Do with it what you will.”
Not because I know what He will do next. But because I trust the One who gave it in the first place.
