The Power of Surrender

Surrender . . . It seems like the easy way out. Just give up. Quit fighting. Cry “uncle.”

It sounds simple. But, is it a good thing? Wouldn’t it be more noble to hang in there and fight to the death? Isn’t surrendering the same thing as admitting that you can’t cut it?

The dictionary defines surrender as:

1. To yield to the power, possession or control of another
2. To give oneself up
3. To give up, abandon or relinquish

What part of that is “the easy way out”? Giving up control is hard AND scary. But, that is exactly what is required to find freedom. It’s difficult to wrap our heads around the idea that freedom can only be found by giving ourselves up to God’s control. Our logical minds try to tell us that it’s just the opposite—that as we gain more and more control over our life we will find greater freedom. But, demanding control is not the answer. In fact, it only creates questions:

• “How does a sensitive little boy grow up and get to the point where he is so out of control in an addiction that he can see no way out of his struggles but to take his life?
• How does a Christian, with integrity and morals in every other area of his life end up in a seedy hotel with a prostitute?
• How does a man who prays, reads his Bible and hears from the God of the universe get to a place where he is willing to deny his Lord and Savior?
• How does a man who truly loves his wife and children more than he loves himself, risk them all for yet another fleeting high?
• How do you reclaim and redeem a life that has been filled with so much hurt, confusion, denial and bad choices?
• How do you start to let God restore what the locusts have eaten?

There are no answers until we first admit defeat.”

—An excerpt from our own story: Now Choose Life!

Admitting to God that we don’t know how to get ourselves out of the mess we’re in and inviting Him to help us increasingly surrender our control to him are the fist steps in finding both the answers and the freedom we desire.

“For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.” — Matthew 16:25; Mark 8:35: Luke 9:24 (NIV)