A Surrendered Life

Surrender can be a scary word. It means to abandon oneself to an influence, to give into, to yield control to another. We need to be careful to whom we might yield ourselves in life. Not everyone is worthy of trust or surrender. In our search for direction and in our desire to meet our own deepest human needs we often yield control to people who can harm or injure us for their own selfish interests. We do need guidance and direction in life. There are just so many choices we must make in life!  But in the process of seeking direction and guidance we need to exercise caution and develop the gift of discernment to help us know whose voice to trust and whose to run from. The word discernment means the ability to judge well.  Discernment is exercised with the goal of obtaining direction and understanding. There are so many voices calling to control the direction of our lives. Those voices are often contradictory and confusing. Just which way should we turn at a critical juncture in our lives?
  For many years now I have worked with college age young adults from all over the world. I have found that it really doesn't matter if you're from Iraq or Illinois....we all have the same basic needs and desires for life. There are two fundamental needs we have as humans that relate to how God has shaped us and formed us. We all have a need for significance. We all have a need for security. Our significance is rooted in becoming someone who can make a difference... whose life is more than a sand castle washed away by the next wave. We were made to make a mark on eternity.  Our security is rooted in our need for being loved for who we really are.....right now....unconditionally. So much of human love is conditional and  transient.... and thus insecure.  I will love you if..... you lose weight....get a better job....make better grades.....change your eating habits......move to another state or country..... you name it the conditions are numerous and often inconsistent.
  But what if you had a relationship with someone who loved you right now....right where you are and that love promised to be forever? How would that impact your sense of security? Is there such a love available? Many profess love. The world is full of romantic song, poems and stories. We never tire of hearing about love. Worldwide our cultures are saturated with tales of love. But there is one love story that reigns supreme. It involves sacrifice, passion and even sacrificial death on your behalf.... and mine. We are told an amazing story of beauty being exchanged for ashes at a critical time in human history. God took upon human form and spoke out about a never ending love in the clarion call of the gospel of John, " For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."
  Our need for security and significance drive all that we do. We don't want to die... to perish.  We were made for love.  We were made for relationship. We were made to live and enjoy love forever. And God comes to us and offers us just that kind of life. When we connect with that love and begin to believe in it, we go from existing and taking up space to living and making a difference.
  Faith is a reality we all are immersed in. We all believe in something. What we trust....what we yield ourselves to ..... what and whom our lives are guided and steered by helps us understand our destiny. Our choices day by day determine the direction of our lives in the here and now and ultimately in the there and then beyond our human comprehension. Who do you trust?
  When we open ourselves up to the love of God we begin to discover a life of surrender is actually a path of joy and peace.....not an absence of conflict or difficulty....but the presence of a real and tangible love that never leaves us....ever.
  One of the wisest statements I have ever read about surrender comes from the Proverbs of the Old Testament chapter 3 and verses 5,6 " Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge him,  and he will make straight your paths."
  When you surrender to a faithful and ever loving Savior you're set free from so much fear, strain and uncertainty.  A surrendered life is a beautiful life. It's not a life without sorrow....but is a life where not a single tear drops goes unnoticed and not a single sorrow is wasted. Today, I encourage you to begin to ask God reveal himself to you for who he really is. He is love.  He is faithful.  He is worthy of your trust.
It's time to surrender....it's a wonderful life.

Jim