Surrendering Instead of Striving
I see it in my classroom every day. It’s that streak of independence that drives my students to find their own way, despite the instruction I give them. It can lead to all kinds of trouble as my little people get off track and miss the mark of the lesson or task. Sometimes it can manifest itself in relationship issues when they barrel ahead without thinking of the appropriate steps to resolve a conflict.
It is challenging for us humans to submit to authority and do things someone else’s way. We want to assert our independence and we prefer to direct our own paths.
What do we do, then, when God asks us to surrender? By definition, surrendering means to stop resisting and submit to authority. In the world’s terms, surrendering is a sign of defeat. It means that you didn’t win the battle and have to give up. Who wants that?
God does. That is difficult for us to digest.
The prophet Jeremiah puts it this way:
“I know, O Lord, that a man’s life is not his own; it is not for man to direct his steps.” (Jeremiah 10:23 NIV)
While independent thinking is a valid life skill, it is only successful in the framework of God’s plan for us. As much as we’d like to think so, we are not masters of our own lives. God ultimately directs our path, whether we agree with it or not.
Is God some dictatorial sergeant who insists we blindly follow His direction? Far from it. He is a loving God, who designed us. He knows us inside and out. God has our pathway figured out – the only path that works well specifically for us. He knows the future and can see all the pitfalls and stumbling blocks that will cross our paths. Some of these He uses for our growth. Others he directs us around, if we are willing to take direction.
With God directing our steps we have hope. We cannot relieve our challenging situations on our own. Ultimately it is God who has things in control and He will be there to guide us through whatever happens, if we let Him.
I am sure we can all relate experiences where we strive to work things out ourselves, only to fall flat on our face. What we think should work can easily be dashed to pieces in a heartbeat. What is the remedy?
Staying close to God and listening for His voice to direct us is very important. His Word is filled with guidance for whatever we may face. In Scripture we also find numerous words of hope. God’s grace and mercy flow through these pages.
We can talk to God and ask Him to show us His best path for us. This needs to be done with an open-minded heart to accept that what God directs us to do might not be what we think is best at the moment. Trusting Him to guide us is the best way.
I know it is not easy to do so. We want to figure things out ourselves. We want what we want. Consider what your life is like when you go barrelling ahead on your own and when you trust your path to God. There is a significant difference.
Surrendering to God does not contain us; it blesses us beyond measure. Seek the Lord and He will answer. He has wondrous plans for you!
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