Surrender

Surrender – to willingly yield to God’s authority and relinquish personal control in favor of His will. 

To most of us women, the idea of giving up control and trusting someone other than ourselves to ensure a successful outcome is difficult. We like to fix things, but sometimes God reminds us it is not our job to fix it or make it better. That’s HIS job and that’s where trust and surrender are keys to our Christian walk. 

“Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” Romans 12:12 

Trusting in our Father God should be the easiest thing we ever have to do – wake up and trust HIM! However, by the time the alarms are ringing and the kids are screaming, we are not thinking that trusting God is the easiest task of the day and giving up control of how the day will go is not on the agenda either. 

But, I stop, take a breath, and pause. God wants the very best for me today, so why should I be so arrogant to think that my plans for me and my family are better than HIS?

The most recent case in point is when my husband and I decided it was time to buy a new home. We had been praying for this since our daughter was born and we experienced the need for more space. I wrote our prayers down and placed them in our prayer pumpkin to look back on later. We had every hope and faith that God would put us in the right house for our family. While driving to work one day, a for sale sign caught my eye. Instantly, I was in love with this house, thinking about all the renovations we could do to make it our own, all the space the kids would have, the fireplace, etc. After my husband and I looked at the house, we went full speed to race to get into this house we wanted, and we ignored red flag after red flag. We clearly heard God say to us, “Be patient. I am not saying no, I am saying not right now,” but we refused to listen and trust and surrender to the plan God had for us, and it cost us. After three weeks, we had spent almost all the money we had saved up to spend on fun things for our new home, and instead had to use the money to fix and repair a house that would never become our home. 

Fast forward to the end of the closing process, and it was time for the house to be inspected. Even after all the money and repairs, the inspection failed, and our mortgage company could not provide us a loan for this property due to an unsafe foundation. So, we were out a lot of money and a house, all while living out of boxes in our old house, because we were in such a rush to move to a bigger space. We were devastated that our plan fell through and that we didn’t listen. It reminded me of the story of a mom and her young son in the car. She is driving and being silly, and he just wants to “go faster, Mom!” However, his tiny head cannot see out the window, the semi-truck heading for their car. We don’t see over the mountains in our lives, but God has an amazing 360° view! 

Jeremiah 29:11 tells us God knows the plans for our lives. He wants nothing but good things, blessed things, to come our way. He just asks that we surrender to Him and trust in Him completely.

As upset as I was about all the time and money spent on a house that would never become our home, I am so thankful we have a loving Father who was looking out for us. Our children could have been hurt, our floor could have collapsed, and things would have been horrific. Our lives, like our homes, must be planted on a firm foundation, and that is Jesus Christ, a foundation that is unshakeable. So as difficult as it is to give up the control, choose to trust and surrender to the Father who loves you so much. He wants you to have a home with a strong foundation, filled with trust, hope, and lots and lots of love!

We want to thank Randi Cason for sharing this post.