Living a Surrendering Life

Early on I learned to set goals, prioritize them, and work to achieve them. This approach to life has served me well. It works. "Plan your work, then work the plan" - or so the saying goes.

Over the past couple years I have come to the realization that I have achieved my plans, and I'm living my life. It is not exactly what I had in mind, but in some aspects it is much more than I ever dreamed. All in all, my life is fine. FINE. Is that what God wants for me? From me? A fine life? After taking this up with God and asking, "What now Lord? What would You have me do? How best can I use Your gifts to further your Kingdom - to bring You glory?" The answer came. I wonder how long it took for me to hear it. I was expecting a new goal, perhaps a goal that would stretch my faith to greater trust than ever before...The answer came, again and again, until I finally recognized it. He said, "Surrender."

It is always exciting when we hear God, and at first I was just elated to have the answer. I thought "Of course - surrender. That is what I did when I first trusted You as my Savior and Lord. That is what I have done at several critical points in my life - surrendered my agenda, my goals and expectations to You. I can do that." Yet on further consideration, I thought I had already surrendered to Him. I reviewed all the different areas of my life to see if I was inconsistent or out of line with any of my commitments or activities. Being a fairly compulsive goal setter, everything seemed appropriate. But in the process, I became amused just listening to myself present the litany of activities which proved my allegiance to Christ. 

Surrender. Although I did not completely understand what that meant, I understood enough to begin asking, "What does it mean to live a surrendered life today, Lord?" What a shift in gears. What a different way to approach life. After some time, and many questions and protests with myself and with God, I am beginning to understand. I am beginning to enjoy and even revel in surrender.

We surrender at the end of the battle when we have exhausted our resources and all hope of victory. It usually occurs at a specific point in time. We come to the "point of surrender." That is the point. It has been a point in time and not a way of life. In Colossians 2:6 Paul says "So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him..." We received Christ Jesus by faith when we surrendered to Him. We are to continue to live a surrendered life by faith. But what does that mean?

Does a surrendered life mean one of resignation and passivity? A life without goals and direction? The surrendered life is just one paradox among many in our faith.

Martin Luther realized that the key to understanding Biblical truth in light of Christ's death is to recognize and think in terms of paradox. A paradox is a statement that appears to contradict truth but actually contains a deeper truth. In Philippians 2:7-9 Paul says that Jesus made Himself nothing taking the form of a servant, only later to be made so great that everyone in the universe will bow to Him. The paradox is that Jesus became nothing in order to become everything. Jesus wins by losing. To deliver sinners, He is defeated by them. He lifts us up by bringing us low. To find real life we must lose our life. When we surrender all that we are and have to God, He makes us into all that we can possibly be, and uses all that we have to glorify Him. Surrendering does not mean sitting back and doing nothing as the world passes us by. Surrender will result in doing and being more than we ever dreamed.

As I struggle to remain surrendered to God throughout my day, I have discovered that the biggest difference is my focus. Up until now, I had surrendered at different points in time - during an extended time of prayer, or when a crisis forced me to. Then, after receiving my "marching orders," I conscientiously pressed on in carrying out whatever it was that I believed God wanted me to do. As I worked diligently to do God's will, my focus was on the job at hand rather than God. I was determined to be responsible with my gifts and to try and please God. This is a common scenario for those of us who find ourselves being overly responsible in our work and in our relationships. Is it no surprise that we would be overly responsible in our relationship with God as well? No doubt we will stand before Him one day and give an account of all that He has entrusted to us. But where does our responsibility end and His begin? Perhaps the line is not a clear one, nor the language a helpful one.

God is the one who has called us; God is the one who has gifted us; God is the one who has empowered us. We respond to God because of His grace and His Spirit's enabling. In light of His all sufficiency and our dependency, the surrendering life seems more descriptive than the surrendered life. Living in a surrendering mode helps us to focus on God rather than on what we have surrendered. It shifts our focus and centers our life on God rather than on our religious duty. 

THE SURRENDERING LIFE IS DAILY

So what does the surrendering life look like? First of all, it is daily. We never finish surrendering and move on. As life and all of its ups and downs continues - so must our surrendering. It is not something we can check off our "to do list" and feel smug about. It is our way of life. 

THE SURRENDERING LIFE IS A FOCUSED LIFE

A surrendering life demands a focused life. So focused that all else remains in the background and a little blurry. So focused that the things of His kingdom are more real than the things of this world. No competing priorities are given a hearing. We are to take every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). To remain this focused we need fellowship with others who will encourage and help us by pointing out when our focus has shifted without our knowing.

THE SURRENDERING LIFE IS AN INTIMATE LIFE

The surrendering life is an intimate life with Jesus. Our communication with Him goes on throughout the day as we discuss our circumstances and opportunities with Him - relinquishing our will to His. As we see how He moves in our lives and orchestrates the world around us, we begin to understand more about Him and His ways. This leads to and promotes a thoughtful life. We will automatically slow down the pace of our lives as we continually surrender our selves, our circumstances, and our decisions to God. The "luxury" of living our lives in the present tense and not rushing from on activity to the next is essential in surrendering to God.

THE SURRENDERING LIFE ANCHORS US TO GOD

Living surrendering lives anchors us to God. Because He is the one living through us, we can feel secure and relaxed. Our foundation is solid, and so we can remain confident and hopeful in distressing circumstances. More than that, Jesus becomes our delight. He will never disappoint us. As our lives become more centered on Christ, they also become more full of joy. In Psalm 37:4 the psalmist says, "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." It is not an either-or proposition. We do not need to choose between pleasing God or pleasing ourselves. When we place our affections on God, He fulfills them. Delighting in God means being totally satisfied with God in every area of life. As we surrender to Him, He will be faithful to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us (Ephesians 3:20).

The greatest outcome of the surrendering life is that is gives God the glory. When we are surrendering, our lives will speak very clearly of God's love and power. As Richard Baxter put it, "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." This is a "no lose" situation. The surrendering life is the life that will bring us the most satisfaction and God the most glory.

~ By Dr. Jane Goleman