Sep 17, 2012
How Do I Surrender to God? (With A Short Worship Video)
My battle to surrender to God
Years ago I wanted to live out in the country — wide open spaces, breathing room, no smog.
But God was calling me to the city.
So if I was going to obey, I needed to surrender to God.
But what does that mean? And how do you do it?
What it means to surrender to God
I find it helpful to explain it in terms of faith.
I wanted to live out in the country — which meant that to some extent I was trusting country-living to satisfy me.
But I needed to surrender that to God — which meant I needed to turn from trusting country-living to satisfy me — and instead trust Jesus Christ alone to fully satisfy me.
But that’s not as easy as it sounds.
So — how do we surrender to God?
Here’s what I have found helpful —
Search your heart to discover any areas you are not surrendering to God.
Here’s how I can tell that’s happening —
- I’m desiring something more than Jesus Christ
- I’m bothered about something God has not yet given me
- There’s part of my life I’m not willing to pray about
- There’s something I’m fearful about losing or not getting
For me — it was living in the country.
Then —
Fight to trust that Jesus Christ alone will fully and lastingly satisfy you.
Not that Jesus AND country-living will fully satisfy me.
Just — Jesus Christ.
That’s what He promises — in verses like Psalm 16:11; Psalm 73:25-26; John 4:13-14; John 6:35; John 7:37-39; and Philippians 3:8.
So I prayed over that promise until the Holy Spirit changed my heart — and strengthened my faith so I trusted and experienced Jesus Christ fully satisfying me.
And when I experienced this, my desire for country-living died away.
And because that desire died away — I could surrender that gladly to Jesus Christ.
So —
What do you need to surrender to Jesus Christ?
To help — pray over the above Scriptures.
Then — use this worship video to help you pray and worship and surrender.
And — let me know what God does in your heart —
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YB9avoFdYrU&feature=related
How did this impact you?
I’d love to hear — leave a reply below. Thanks!
If you know someone who is struggling to surrender to God, email this to them using the “share” button below.
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And here’s some related posts you might find helpful —
- 6 Reasons Heart-Satisfaction Is Crucial
- Discovering What You Are Really Trusting
Worship Christ as Your Treasure (4-Min Video "Knowing You")
(Picture is from Microsoft Publisher Clipart.)
Awesome! I love that, like your story, God has really taught me to surrender my living situation to him so many times over the last couple years (Acts 17:26-27 is somewhat of a life verse for me). I pray God continues to let you be surrendered to him in all things…what freedom! Amazing!
Thanks for letting me know you found this helpful Erin — I appreciate the encouragement. And I had not thought of Acts 17:26-27 in that connection before — but what a powerful application!
Onward —
Steve
Steve, you wrote that you wanted to live in the country which meant that to some extent you were trusting in that to satisfy you…would you say that every desire we have indicates a trust in something other than Jesus to satisfy us? Or did you mean that you recognized in this specific situation your desire had become a heart-satisfaction-issue. My mind is trying to wrap around the possibility of every desire being an idol (essentially), but I want to be clear as to whether that’s what you’re meaning or not…
Thanks, Steve!
Great question, Michelle (as usual!).
It seems to me there are three kinds of desires. There’s desire for Jesus Christ. Then there’s desire for something that is clearly opposed to desire for Jesus Christ — like desire to murder someone (which is clearly against God’s will).
Then there’s desire for something that is NOT clearly opposed to desire for Jesus Christ — like the desire to live out in the country, or to get married, or to eat food.
These latter desires might or might not be idolatrous. I can tell these desires are idolatrous when —
— I desire them more than Jesus Christ.
— My desire for them is not leading me to more delight in Jesus Christ.
— My desire for them is drawing me away from following Christ — drawing me from prayer, from God’s Word, from loving others, from advancing the Gospel.
Here’s a quote from Augustine I have found helpful — “He loves Thee too little who loves anything together with Thee, which he loves not for Thy sake.”
Or like Psa 43:4 says (literally) — then I will go to God “the joy of my joys.”
I hope that helps some! Let me know what you think.
I was so happy to find this today. I went through a surrendering experience yesterday where I wrote down all the things that I was saying “God, you can anything but….” Most were good things. Going through a very difficult messy and painful marriage trial right now and things I desire now are not bad, but they are keeping me from being fully satisfied in Christ and also making me think if I have these things, I will be satisfied. It was literally painful to surrender these desires. Reading this was very encouraging to me that I’m headed in the right direction. I love your practical “instructions” in these kinds of things, like when you talk about how to cast your cares on the Lord. It feels so vague to say I surrender this or I’m casting my cares on Him, but walking through the process the way you do with us, shows how it really can have the affect that the Lord wants it to have on us. Thank you for this!
As a Christian I have struggled with alcohol at various times. I failed to surrender completely to God. Now as I seek to be rid of alcohol I am trying to understand and fully surrender to Jesus Christ. My current struggle is that my wife left as a result of the problem with alcohol that I hid when I lost my job and the resulting behaviours. I am praying for the healing and restoration of our marriage and despite her desire for a divorce I am standing for my vows. Your post is causing me to wonder if I can surrender fully while praying that God will convict my wife to return and rebuild our Christian home and family with a sober husband. It honours God, but am I surrendering to Him if I continue to pray for and desire that outcome?
So I’ve had a rough few weeks and I’m lost doubting God and what he means. I’ve spent long days and nights thinking trying to figure out what I’ve done wrong. Someone told me to pay attention to the little signs from God .. Then random things started happening to me to make me think, question if it wasn’t God leading me giving me signs guiding me to where I need to be…so today I sit here on my porch thinking ng I guess talking it out in my head … I think I have finally figured it out.. My heart is heavy my mind is overwhelmed I’m lost but today I believe I’ve realized what I need to do. . let go of everything open my heart take his outstretched hand and let GOD in. Surrender.