Surrender: To give over to the power, control and or possession of another by force.
Before I followed Jesus I had my own destiny set out. I planned I would get married at 25, have babies around 27 and then buy my dream home. I wanted to go to college and become an educator and eventually desired to teach over seas. I can say as of now, none of those things happened. In thought, all of this sounded like a great plan and I was adamant about accomplishing these goals but once I gave my life to Christ in 2022 I was instructed by him to let everything go.
I had to surrender my life and pay the price.
The price of following Jesus meant I had to leave my old life behind and take on the life that he desired for me.
Even if I didn’t understand or fully agree with it.
Why We Struggle To Surrender.
We walk by faith and not by sight.
Following God is an act of boldness in face of the worlds customs and ideals. The world comes into alignment with what is physically seen, followers of God must learn to come into alignment with what is known.
What is known in the spirit realm is not always physically seen in the natural.
For the things of the spirit are only known to those who walk in the spirit. Those who walk in the flesh cannot walk in faith for they are visually impaired in the spirit. I hope this makes sense. Therefore, our greatest struggle with surrender comes from our fleshly desire to physically see in order to trust God. Many believers in Christ struggle with visual impairment in the spirit because of the lack of intimacy that is needed with God in the hiding place. This visual impairment limits us from moving forward in power, comprehending the secrets of God and overcoming Satans’ agendas.
If we dive deeper we will find that our inability to surrender also stems from our limited knowledge of who God is. Immersion in religion instead of relationship can distort our view; Viewing God as someone that is waiting to punish us over every offense instead of the loving God who desires repentance, reconciliation, redemption, renewal and restoration. When you understand Gods character you will know that he is on your side and that he has good plans for you. His thoughts are good towards you, therefore, surrender becomes less about fear and more about trust.
The last focal point that limits our ability to surrender is pride. Surrender is a heart posture; a form of pure worship that places God in the center of our hearts. Pride seeks to replace man’s knowledge above the wisdom of God. Refusal to submit to Gods ways and will is an act of pride which is disobedience. When we say ‘no’ to Gods plan we are essentially saying ‘my way is better. my way will work out better. I am right’ forfeiting the wonderous life he has for us.
When I really sit and ponder on the struggle of our surrender to God I noticed that it is rooted in the flesh. Everyday we are surrendering to something; a career, a thought, man made systems, legislations, family traditions and more. We don’t mind surrendering as long as it is self serving.
It is only when our limitations are pushed and comfortabilities impeded upon we push back in fear.
God has not given us the spirit of fear but a spirit of boldness and courage; and there are moments where we need the boldness to trust God against all odds and to surrender even when we don’t see the bigger picture. There is so much our Father in heaven has in store for us as his beloved children but it takes us surrendering that will bring about the fulfilled promises over our lives.
What is an area in your life that you are struggling to surrender to God?