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There are many days when I think my way is the best way: my way to raise kids, my way to prepare dinner, my way to load the dishwasher. And while I may have good ideas from time to time, I’ve also had plenty of moments where I’ve fallen flat on my face. Even knowing how many mistakes I make on a daily basis, giving up control is hard to do. But I really want to learn the beauty of surrender.
Why Do We Struggle for Control?
Control is the ultimate way to contain anxiety. Many of us feel if we plan, organize, and schedule, we can keep our fears and worries at bay. The problem is this only gives us the illusion of control. None of us can order the sun to rise, the storms to cease, or problems to disappear. So instead, we focus on managing the small things. When our fears outweigh our strength, rigid boundaries form around our hearts and minds.
Learning the Beauty of Surrender
From childhood, I dreamed of being a singer. I would study and mimic the greats of the day like Julie Andrews, Judy Garland, and Karen Carpenter. I immersed myself in music and eventually received a degree in voice. Imagine my delight when a Christian label signed me. I thought God was telling me He would use my voice to lead people to Him. And then, tragedy struck. I was diagnosed with a medical illness that affected my voice.
For months, I cried and begged for God to change my diagnosis, but He didn’t. Sometimes I think perhaps God isn’t as interested in getting us out of our current circumstances as He is in molding us into the image of His Son through our circumstances.
To make my long story short, God led me down a new path: writing. And my life has changed in profound ways for the better. His plan ended up being ten times better than my old dreams. I learned I could have a voice and still not have a voice. God has a beautiful way of doing that. Through divine interruption, He transforms the ordinary into something extraordinary, but we must be willing to let Him move.
Leaning on Jesus’ Example
Jesus gave us the perfect prayer for surrender. “This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven’” (Matthew 6:9-10 NIV).
This simple prayer is the key to show us how to live, breathe, move, and think as God’s child. When we pray for God’s will, we surrender our wants in exchange for His. We confess that He is ruler over all, and we admit our dependence on Him.
When I was a child, I would stand on a chair and stare at the seemingly long drop to the floor. I would wait, my stomach clenching, wondering if a leap of faith would cause me harm. But I never worried about that when my father held out his arms to catch me. Fear disappears when we realize the love of the one who is catching us.
Palms Up
I’ve finally realized if I can trust God with my eternity, I can also trust Him with the day-to-day things that threaten to topple my wobbly faith. If He can speak the world into existence, part the Red Sea, and send His Son to redeem us, I can trust Him with my todays and tomorrows.
We certainly have the choice to walk through life with our fists clenched tightly, but there is profound beauty, joy, and adventure when we uncurl our fingers and lift them to God. Good things are waiting when we put our faith in Him.
Palms up is a beautiful way to live.
Listen now to a short segment of this guided meditation from Abide based on Matthew 6:11 about how Jesus taught us to pray every day just for what we need.
For more help to learn the beauty of surrender, download the Abide app. Our 1500+ guided meditations, more than 400 Bible-based sleep stories, and daily devotionals all exist to help you experience the peace of Christ as you learn the beauty of surrender. Use this link for 25% off a premium subscription.
Tara is an author and speaker who loves to write stories that help people break free from the lies they believe about themselves.
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