Daily Surrender

"There is hope for me yet, because God won't forget, all the plans He's made for me! I'll have to wait and see; He's not finished with me yet." - Brandon Heath

Seeing direction in our lives is difficult when your future lies in the hands of Another. While you know your future is secure, it can be frustrating to not know what God has for you. You are told from day one to trust, not to worry, and to live in today. Tomorrow screams our name, and we are told to ignore it's call. The future looms ahead, and now the unknown isn't even decided by us, it's decided by Jesus.

When coming to Christ, many don't realize HOW MUCH surrender it takes to truly follow Him. They accept Christ and get 'fire insurance', but as soon as the walk gets hard, they walk away. They may still attend church, and pray before meals, but their resolve and love die and fade into complacency. 

Those who stay true to the faith are often confronted with hard truths. One of the heaviest being that we can no longer control our futures, because we have invested our future in Jesus Christ. Now HE decides our future; tomorrow, next week, forever. It's scary to think that we have no control, and exciting to think of the adventure that lies ahead. Think of the joy, the pain, that Jesus and you will walk through! The easy days and the hard ones, the two of you, hand in hand, and one day you'll look back and burn with a passion for your Lord and Savior as you see all He's done.

I've had moments when I gave up trust and faith in Christ, and unknowingly demanded my life back from Him. I didn't realize it at the time, but the very things I surrendered to Jesus - my friends, my schedule, my activities - I slowly started taking out of His hands and putting them in my lap. In those times, when I wanted it all back, I was done with the hardship, and I wanted control of my life again. And rather than fight me over me, He gave myself back to me. Funny thing is, He knew my life would fall apart as I held it together, and I would end up surrendering it all back to Him anyways.

There is hope for me. I fail daily, and disregard God's intent for my life. I give Him my most tired moments, the worst of my worship, when He deserves the best of my worship. But He still has plans for me. He hasn't stopped making me. He fills me, then breaks me, then fills me again, knowing that every time I'm filled I learn just a little bit more about His character.

God won't forget all the plans He has for me. Sometimes, though, I'll have to wait. I'll need to sit down and pray and listen. I'll need to walk blindly down a path, laden with troubles, trusting that God knows where He's taking me. He hasn't forgotten, I'm just too blind to see how these broken roads are His plan for me. I'll just have to wait and see.

He's not finished with me yet. If He was, I'd be dead. I must have some purpose. The days where I skip and sing with joy, and the days where I crawl through the mud He found me in, all reflect one thing: movement. And if I'm moving, I'm alive. If I'm alive, I'm breathing. And since God has not stolen His breath from me, I am still needed. 

You know what's awesome? God doesn't leave a bunch of useless people on the earth. He's got a plan for us all. Not one is unneeded; without a purpose for you, you'd be dead. But He works ALL things together for the good of those who love Him. That may not mean a good life, because there are too many bad ones for that to be the case. But He knows what is best for us, and gives us that, so that we will glorify Him with our lives. 

And it's all-inclusive. Believer or not, I truly believe that God has a purpose for you. You are essential. You have purpose. And if you don't like being purposed by a God, that's a bummer, because escaping His will is achieved by death; and even then, in death, I believe God can move powerfully. 

He isn't some chess-master in the sky having fun toying with humanity. He loves us relentlessly, and He has a plan for us. He hands us control sometimes to let us see just how bad it would be if we ran our own lives. He gives us free will, and if we demand that we be in control of our lives, He lets us wreck ourselves. Any success we may gain is short lived and quickly fades with the rest. The reason He wants control is because He loves you so so much, and wants to see you grow in love for HIM.

He desires relationship! He desires the very love He gives us! Our broken, finite love is what He longs for. He doesn't care how faithless, He just whispers, "Give me your love." Our surrender overjoys Him, because the more of us He holds, the more of us He can caress with His love. Don't you see? Our purpose, our futures, ARE HIM! Without Him, we have no hope! With Him, our future is secured, no matter how dark the days! 

So, in surrender, we must give our lives to Christ. Fully and completely. A daily decision, not a one-time deal. It's how we #LiveItLikeJesus.

"Maybe this time You can take the lead!
And I won't try to pull You by the sleeve;
'cause every time I think that I know better I lose my way.
Oh God, what do You want to do today?" - NewWorldSon