Waving the white flag! Surrender often has a feeling of losing attached to it. “I give up!” are the words that come to mind when I think of surrender or waving the white flag. In true God like fashion – what seems bad in a worldly perspective is actually great and wonderful from a biblical perspective.
What do you mean Michelle? Well, let me unpack. Surrender in the bible is about letting God have your life. Surrendering your very control of your life over to the One who created it/you. This is NOT a one and done – matter of fact it is a daily choice but when we do surrender, its so sweet!
“Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.” Matthew 16:24-25
Jesus is not necessarily saying you will die when He says “loses his life” although that outcome can be played out if your very faith is threatened unto death but Jesus is more speaking to your life is not yours anymore – surrender it to Him! Only in the hands of the Creator can we walk out our true purpose.
Purpose is a whole other big topic to cover later but in this post I am just covering Surrender and what that looks like. Surrender is beautiful because its recognizing, I dont know whats best for me but the God of all creation knows best and I want my life to look like His – to be modeled after His. Its also an internal dialogue of “I believe what the Bible says its true and I want to give my life over to purposes God has for me”.
“Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” James 4:7
You CAN live your life for yourself and probably fair out ok. But venture with me in this thought process: you lived your whole life doing what you wanted, marrying who you wanted, making money, doing what you think is best and you fair out ok. Your 80 years old and you realize “I didnt reach my God given potential on this earth because I never fully surrendered my plan to His.”
Even at 80 you can still turn your life around (dont get my wrong!) but why wait? How much pain and agony, purposeless conversations and living you could have spared yourself? You could tell yourself at 80, “It was hard but I know I did what was right, not in my eyes but Gods. I have lived my life for a purpose way bigger than me and my comfort. Matter of fact it stretched me bigger and better than I would have ever done on my own. He made something beautiful out of my life.” Wow! That is a life well-lived!
Surrender to Gods will and plan for your life is actually quite easy. We complicate things as people and the simple, peaceful answer to surrender is let go and do whats right in front of you. You will know. Is there a church in your area you know you should have checked out long ago? Is there a small group or Wednesday night service you feel like you should check out? Even bigger than that, is there something on your heart to do that you know will maybe take up the next few years of your life but you know it will fulfill His purpose? DO IT!
“For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? “For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.” Matthew 16:26-27
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2 responses to “Surrender”
I have struggles with total surrender periodically. It felt like ‘losing myself,’ to me. If I lived solely in Christ or through Christ, is there even a me anymore? The answer the Lord led me to is, not simply a yes, you will still be you. It is that I will be everything I was made to be. If one believes in God, then they also believe they were created. Would a Creator who was so intentional about the inner workings of a planet, an ecosystem, a body be just creating willie nillie? No. He creates with intentionality. He created me, and each of us for a purpose but in order for us to step into that purpose we must be surrendered. The real me, the me I was fashioned to be, will never be realized without first walking in genuine and full surrender. It comes down to trust. Do I trust in the wisdom of God? Am I confident that I will like what he made in me? The beauty of the earth is magnificent. I can’t fathom the God would do anything but exceed that beauty in the creatures fashion in his own image! We see glimpses of his intentions in the scripture. Walk in joy, rejoice, be generous. We see glimpses of his intentions in the lives of those who have surrendered all, George Mueller is a famous example but we have all come face to face with contemporary examples.
Thank you, Michelle for your encouragement and reminder to surrender. May we all embrace being fashioned by loving and generous hands and seek to be all those hands intended.
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I LOVE your thought process on this topic of surrendering to God, Maureen! Thank for you sharing your wisdom on the topic! I think it may answer some questions for people who are reluctant to do so.
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