In movies, especially war movies, there is the surrender of the defeated to the power of the victor. In these scenes, hands are up in the air, faces are downturned, there is clearly fatigue and dejection- and often the defeated are then marched off to a place where their lives are inexorably changed- and not for the better. No one wants to be the one who surrenders- that means you are the loser and subject now to your victor. Even kids can play at this game-“Hands up! Gotcha!” You are the loser…and they are probably glad it’s just a game.
Think of surrender now in a different way. What does it mean to surrender to God? Is He the victor? Are we the loser? When we surrender ourselves to God, it is not in physical posture per se. It’s not about raising our hands up in defeat. Isn’t it about our hearts and our intentions now being subject to God’s will—by the way- His perfect will? We seek to discover God’s perfect will by surrendering our decisions, our thoughts, our actions, our desires- and in doing so, we are not the losers, we are the victors in Him!
According to Charles Stanley in The Wonderful Spirit Filled Life, “His plan for you and me is to move us to the place where we can sincerely say with Christ, Thy kingdom come (regardless of how it interferes with my plans), Thy will be done (in spite of what I expect or desire).” Jesus prayed this in Matthew 26:39- “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will but as Thou wilt.” We need to become ‘neutral’ in our surrender, as Jesus did, in order to hear from the Holy Father. Neutral means being consumed with discovering what pleases God, rather than working to convince Him of the brilliance of our plans. Imagine that….. in our busy chaotic lives….putting God first. Matthew 6:33- "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."
It may take some time, but God is patient with us, (praise the Lord!) and shifting into ‘neutral’ makes His agenda become the priority in our lives. It is with heartfelt surrender, humility, vulnerability and love that our obedience to our God comes much easier.
We have everything to gain and nothing to lose! Surrender!