Surrender. It’s a word that often makes us squirm. We picture waving white flags and admitting defeat. But what if surrender isn’t about losing, but gaining something far greater?
I’ve been chewing on Oswald Chambers’ March 13th devotional from “My Utmost for His Highest,” where he challenges us to rethink surrender. He writes, “In our surrender, we must give ourselves to God in the same way He gave Himself for us— totally, unconditionally, and without reservation.” Let’s see if we can unpack this idea and how it might transform our walk with God.
God's Radical surrender
First, let’s think through how God surrendered Himself for us. John 3:16 (NLT ) tells us, “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” This wasn’t a half-hearted gesture. God didn’t send a stand-in or a representative. He gave His Son—His very self—for us.
Think about that for a moment. The Creator of the universe, the One who spoke galaxies into existence, surrendered Himself to save us. He didn’t hold back. He didn’t add conditions. He gave everything.
Our Response: Total Surrender
So how do we respond to this incredible act of love? Chambers suggests we mirror God’s surrender. We give ourselves to Him “totally, unconditionally, and without reservation”.
But what does this look like in our daily lives?
- Total Surrender: This means every part of every day belongs to God. Our time, our talents, our resources, our dreams—everything. It’s not about giving God our leftovers or fitting Him into our schedule. It’s about recognizing that every breath we take is a gift from Him.
- Unconditional Surrender: We don’t put conditions on our obedience. It’s not, “I’ll follow You, God, as long as things go my way.” Or, “I’ll follow You as long as I understand what You’re doing or that it makes sense to me.” Instead, it’s “I’ll follow You. Period.”
- Surrender Without Reservation: This is where it gets really challenging. We don’t hold anything back. We don’t keep a part of ourselves in reserve, just in case. We’re all in, completely committed.
The Paradox of Surrender
Here’s where it gets interesting. Chambers points out that true surrender doesn’t produce “consciousness of its own effort”. In other words, when we’re truly surrendered, we’re not constantly thinking about how surrendered we are. Our focus shifts entirely to God.
It’s like when you’re deeply in love. You don’t spend your time thinking about how in love you are. You’re too busy thinking about the person you love. In the same way, true surrender to God means we’re caught up in Him, not in our own spiritual achievements.
The Freedom of Surrender
Now, you might be thinking, “This sounds terrifying. If I surrender everything to God, what will I have left?” But here’s the beautiful paradox: in giving everything to God, we gain everything that truly matters.
Jesus said, “If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.” (Matthew 16:25 NLT). If we’ll surrender to God, we’ll find our true selves. We will discover the purpose for which we were created. We will experience a freedom and joy that we never knew existed.
Living It Out
So what does this look like? It starts with recognizing that surrender isn’t a one-time event. It’s a daily choice. Every morning, we have the opportunity to say, “God, today is Yours. And I am Yours. Use me as You will.”
It means being willing to step out of our comfort zones when God calls us to. It means loving the unlovable, forgiving the unforgivable, and trusting God even when life doesn’t make sense or circumstances seem hard.
And here’s the amazing thing: as we surrender, God works through us in ways we never imagined possible. Chambers reminds us that “it is not a question of being saved from hell, but of being saved in order to manifest the life of the Son of God in our mortal flesh.”
The Ultimate Goal
Ultimately, our surrender isn’t about us at all. It’s about allowing God to shine through us. It’s about becoming so caught up in His love and His purposes that our lives become a reflection of His glory.
As we surrender, we’ll find ourselves echoing the words of John the Baptist: “He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.” (John 3:30 NLT). And in that becoming less, we’ll paradoxically find more joy, more purpose, and more life than we ever thought possible.
So today, let’s take up Chambers’ challenge. Let’s surrender to God totally, unconditionally, and without reservation. It won’t always be easy, but it will always be worth it. After all, we’re simply giving back to God what was always His in the first place.
I love this Rick, great job! Stay in surrender
Amen and Amen……. If it were only that simple Rick. Unfortunately, our spiritual lives are not just a light switch we switch ON when we need to (or want to) surrender. Oh how I wished I could just hard wire the switch to the ON position and leave it on. So why don’t I? Does my human nature get in the way? Am I selfish? Am I weak? Lazy? I believe this behavior is a process. It’s like waking up and going to work out to strengthen your body every morning. It’s hard to do but necessary our health. Much in the same way, we need to transform our spiritual minds. This is a lifetime commitment of surrender. Not a New Year’s resolution, not a monthly decision, not even a weekly decision, but a minute by minute change in how we surrender our lives for HIS glory every day. We need to fight each day to battle against this world and everything it tells us how we need to be….Lets put our armor on and fight the good fight through our complete surrender……..
Yes, Steve. It’s a moment-by-moment decision, and it seems to never get easier. You’d think after walking with Jesus for half a century, it would be second nature, right? Sadly . . . it’s not.
Sharing this on my FB – great insights!
Thanks, Toni!