“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Romans 12:1-2
What do you need to let go? Instead of asking yourself, or someone else, this question, I encourage you to bring the question before the Lord with an open heart to hear from Him and a willingness to let go of what He wants you to let go. Let His Spirit through His Word and directly to your heart tell you what in your heart and in your life displeases and dishonors Him. Let Him show you what is unholy, ungodly, unrighteous, and what does not bring Him praise, honor, and glory as everything in our hearts and everything we say and do should.
The Lord is not just concerned with our external lives and our actions; He is concerned with our inner lives, i.e. what’s taking up residence in our hearts and minds. He is also concerned with our relationships, both with others and most importantly with Himself. So yes, we need to let go of the obvious stuff we might think about first like excessive drinking, pornography, homosexuality, sex outside marriage, lying, cheating, stealing, an eating disorder, adultery, rage and violence, etc., but we also need to let go of bitterness, envy, pride, worry, holding onto hurt from long ago, self-pity, hatred, etc. And we need to let go of hurting others, withholding love from others, vengeance, gossip, nastiness, etc. Most of all, we need to let go of anything keeping us from loving, honoring, praising, revering, adoring and serving God to the utmost.
Seems like a tall, if not impossible order, doesn’t it? I don’t believe God expects perfection. I believe He desires that we desire godliness, that we aim our hearts, minds, and actions in the right direction, the direction of Him and His Word, that we strive to please Him in all things at all times, that we want to obey Him to honor Him, that we want and try to express our love for and thanksgiving to Him each and every day, and that we are willing to acknowledge our wrongdoing, to repent and purge ourselves of sin when His Spirit shows it to us, and that we look to Him to purify us and to give us the strength and ability by His Spirit which lives inside His followers to bring glory to His name. It is indeed a tall, and impossible, order when we seek to do any of this in our own human weakness. But when we put our trust in Him to continually refine us and to equip us with His Spirit’s power to honor Him, fully believing He forgives us when we fall short and repent, I believe we bring Him pleasure and glorify His blessed most holy name.