There seems to be a common thread that weaves its way through a life full of satisfaction and contentment. I almost had to say the “S” word!! It often stirs up a negative connotation or expectation of hardship or annoyance.
Surrender is the word. There I said it!!
I surrender!!
How many times do we throw up our hands and say, “I give up!” or “I’m finished”?
Or sing, “Throw you hands up on the air and wave them like you just don’t care!”.
It’s possible that we go all through life not wanting to surrender our rights, our opinions and our actions to those around us. We would never be caught surrendering. It’s a sign of weakness in our world of survival.
A simple definition of surrender means:
•to agree to stop fighting, hiding, resisting, etc., because you know that you can’t win or succeed
•to give control or use of (something) to someone else
•to allow something (such as a habit or desire) to influence or control you
Intransitive verb
•to give oneself up into the power of another
I got to thinking about how many times I tried to control or fix a bad situation or circumstance all by myself. I would use my expertise, wisdom, opinions, research or just what I thought was best to solve a problem. Sometimes my problems were big problems…. like how to stop your daughter from having seizures and other times they were small like……getting your son to close his mouth when he chews his food!!
My point is I am slowly learning. It takes me a couple times around the mulberry bush to figure out that if I just let go and surrender the outcome. The end result usually ends up being much better then if I had kept my hand firmly gripped on the victim or the situation squeezing out anything that didn’t resemble my answer to the problem.
If we practice surrendering all along the way to the power of God rather than our own power we might get where we want to go at a faster speed.
Or perhaps the end result might be even better then we could ever imagine.
It’s a trust factor.
(to give oneself up into the power of another)
Do we trust God that He is capable of handling all our problems?
Do we think He knows what is best?
Do we really believe He is who He says He is?
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto your own understanding; in all thy ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6
That about covers everything in our lives!!
The End!!!
Wish it were that easy!! It starts small everyday and grows bigger in every way. It’s a process.
Start today!!
Dear Lord,
I surrender or yield to your power and completely give up and forgo my opinion in exchange for your wisdom and understanding.
Help me acknowledge who you are to me and accept it as truth as I let go and let YOU be who YOU say YOU are to me!!!
White flag up in the air,
Kelley Allison
http://www.bowlofsplendor.com
Dedicated to my friend Holly Darrah (who is still alive and actively cutting hair while juggling two kids under the age of two)Thanks Holly for reminding me of the importance of daily small surrenders today.
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