Lessons on Faith, Trust, and Letting Go From 12 Days With One Backpack
I traveled through Japan and South Korea for 12 days with just one backpack.
No checked luggage. No suitcase to drag around. Just a backpack with enough clothes and essentials to get me through the trip.
I brought about four or five shirts, two pairs of pants, underwear, toiletries, and one pair of comfortable walking shoes. I planned to do laundry along the way, which I did once in Japan and once in Korea.
And you know what? It worked.
I didn’t feel like I was missing anything important. I had what I needed, and I was able to move around without worrying about carrying too much.
There were plenty of stairs, train stations, and accommodations without elevators. At one place, my room was on the fourth floor. I couldn’t imagine having to carry a large suitcase up all those stairs.
The experience made me think beyond carrying my backpack.
How much do we carry through life that we don’t really need?
Not physical belongings, necessarily, but the things we hold onto emotionally and spiritually. Our worries. Our fears. Our disappointments. Our expectations. Even the need to have everything figured out before we take another step.
We carry these things for so long that sometimes we don’t even realize how much they’re affecting us.
I wonder how much lighter our hearts could feel if we learned to surrender some of those burdens to God.
When Being Prepared Becomes Trying to Control Everything
I’ve always believed in being prepared, especially when traveling.
I like knowing where I’m going, where I’m staying, and how I’m getting there. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. In fact, planning ahead has saved me from unnecessary problems more than once.
But I’ve also learned that no amount of planning guarantees everything will happen the way we expect.
I was reminded of that in Busan.
I thought I had another day at my Airbnb. I had already made plans to spend the afternoon relaxing and watching Korean dramas.
Then I discovered I was supposed to check out.
Suddenly, my plans changed.
I had to find another accommodation, rush back to the Airbnb, pack my belongings, and figure out how to get to the next place.
I remember hurrying up to my room on the fourth floor. My belongings had been set aside on the table, and I quickly packed everything into my backpack.
I was rushing, and I was sweating.
Thankfully, I didn’t have much to pack.
Eventually, I made my way to my next accommodation using public transportation.
Everything worked out, but I learned an important lesson that day.
I should have double-checked my reservation instead of assuming I had another day.
And while I was grateful that packing light made the situation easier, I also realized something else.
Being prepared is important, but we cannot prepare for every possible outcome.
Sometimes life interrupts our plans. Sometimes things happen that we didn’t anticipate. And sometimes we have to make decisions without knowing exactly how everything will turn out.
That’s where faith becomes important.
Not because faith eliminates uncertainty, but because it reminds us that uncertainty doesn’t mean God has abandoned us.
Reminders to Travel Lighter Through Life
In Matthew 11:28–30, Jesus invites those who are weary and burdened to come to Him for rest.
What I appreciate about this invitation is that Jesus doesn’t tell us to get everything together before approaching Him.
He invites us to come as we are.
We don’t have to pretend that we’re strong all the time. We don’t have to act as though everything is under control.
Sometimes we need to admit that we’re tired.
And sometimes the most faithful thing we can do is acknowledge that we need God’s help.
A passage in Hebrews 12:1 encourages believers to put aside what hinders them and continue running with perseverance.
I think about this when I consider the things we hold onto long after they’ve stopped helping us.
Maybe it’s a disappointment we keep revisiting.
Maybe it’s a fear that prevents us from trying something new.
Or perhaps it’s an expectation we’ve placed on ourselves that God never asked us to fulfill.
Not every responsibility is an unnecessary burden, and not every difficult circumstance is something we can simply walk away from.
But there are attitudes, habits, and fears we can begin to release.
1 Peter 5:7 reminds us that we can give our anxieties to God because He cares for us.
I find that deeply comforting.
God’s care isn’t dependent on how well we manage our lives.
He cares when we’re confident, and He cares when we’re uncertain.
He cares when our plans work out, and He cares when they fall apart.
We may still have responsibilities to handle, decisions to make, and problems to solve. But we don’t have to face those things without turning to Him.
Soul Insights
1. We Sometimes Carry More Than We Need Because We’re Afraid
When we pack for a trip, it’s easy to bring extra things because we’re worried about what might happen. We imagine situations that may never occur, and we try to prepare for all of them. I think we sometimes approach life the same way, holding onto worries because we believe worrying will somehow make us more prepared. But fear doesn’t always protect us, and learning to trust God means recognizing when our thoughts are preparing us for action and when they’re simply keeping us anxious.
2. Letting Go Doesn’t Mean Being Irresponsible
I didn’t travel with one backpack because I decided preparation wasn’t necessary. I carefully considered what I needed, packed accordingly, and made arrangements to wash my clothes during the trip. The same principle applies to faith: surrendering our worries doesn’t mean ignoring our responsibilities or refusing to make plans. It means doing what we reasonably can while accepting that we cannot control every outcome.
3. Sometimes We Discover Our Strength When Plans Change
My unexpected checkout in Busan wasn’t something I wanted to experience. I made a mistake, and I had to deal with the consequences quickly. But I was also reminded that I could think through a problem, make decisions, and find a way forward. God has given us the ability to learn, adapt, and grow, and sometimes difficult experiences reveal capabilities we didn’t realize we had developed.
4. We Need to Examine What We’re Still Holding Onto
Some burdens become so familiar that we stop questioning why we’re carrying them. We hold onto old disappointments, regrets, and fears, sometimes allowing them to influence decisions long after the original experience has passed. Letting go doesn’t mean pretending those experiences never happened or denying that they hurt. It means asking God to help us recognize what still needs healing and what no longer needs to determine how we live.
5. Trusting God Is Something We Practice
I don’t believe faith means never feeling afraid or uncertain. There are times when we pray, trust God, and still have questions about what comes next. But trust grows as we continue bringing those concerns to Him instead of believing we must resolve everything ourselves. We can make thoughtful decisions, acknowledge our limitations, and keep moving forward, knowing that our relationship with God isn’t dependent on having a perfectly organized life.
Three Thoughts Worth Carrying
A few reminders I want to keep close:
“Not everything I can carry is something I need to keep.”
— Soul Path Insights
There are things we become capable of enduring that we were never meant to hold onto indefinitely. Just because we’ve learned to live with a burden doesn’t mean we shouldn’t examine whether it’s time to release it.
“Preparation helps me make decisions. Faith helps me live with what I cannot predict.”
— Soul Path Insights
I want to continue planning responsibly while remembering that my peace cannot depend entirely on everything going according to plan.
“I can learn from yesterday without carrying its mistakes into every tomorrow.”
— Soul Path Insights
I made a mistake with my reservation in Busan. I learned from it, and I’ll be more careful about checking my bookings in the future. But I don’t need to keep criticizing myself for something I’ve already acknowledged and corrected.
Reflections
1. What am I carrying today that may be affecting my peace?
Is there a worry, disappointment, expectation, or fear that I’ve allowed to occupy too much of my thoughts? Have I brought it to God honestly, or have I been trying to manage it entirely on my own?
2. Where might I be confusing preparation with control?
Am I making responsible plans, or am I exhausting myself trying to anticipate every possible problem? What would it look like to do my part while allowing room for uncertainty?
3. What would surrender look like in one specific area of my life?
Is there something I need to pray about, release, address, or approach differently? What practical step can I take today that reflects both faith and responsibility?
Final Thoughts: Making Room for What Matters
When I look back on my trip to Japan and South Korea, I’m glad I decided to travel with one backpack.
It made getting around easier. I didn’t have to worry about dragging a suitcase through train stations or carrying it up several flights of stairs.
And when my plans unexpectedly changed in Busan, having less to pack helped me respond quickly.
But the experience also gave me something to reflect on.
I wonder how often we complicate our lives by holding onto things we believe we need, even when they’re no longer helping us.
Sometimes it’s an old fear. Sometimes it’s a disappointment. Sometimes it’s the pressure we place on ourselves to have everything figured out.
I’m learning that trusting God doesn’t mean I’ll never encounter problems or make mistakes.
It means I can face those moments without believing I have to carry every concern by myself.
I still have responsibilities. I still have goals and plans. And I still have things I’m working through.
But I want to be more intentional about what I allow to occupy my heart.
Because life will always give us something to carry.
The question is whether everything we’re holding onto belongs there.
And perhaps that’s something worth bringing to God in prayer today.
© 2026 Amelie Chambord
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