On any given Sunday morning, at churches across the world, you can hear Christians singing the beautiful hymn, “All to Jesus I Surrender.” The lyrics of the hymn speak of fully surrendering our lives to Jesus.
“All to Jesus I surrender,
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In His presence daily live.
I surrender all,
I surrender all,
All to Thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.”
The lyrics are beautiful. The music is beautiful. But do we truly put these words into practice? Anything that is holding you back (anger, fear, jealousy, frustration, bitterness, unforgiveness, anxiety, doubt, worry) keeps you from fully surrendering to Jesus.
We are told in Scripture to fully surrender our lives to Jesus in order for us to receive the gift of salvation. But once we have received the gift of salvation, we must pursue a daily surrender of ourselves. We have to completely empty ourselves in order for God to fill us up. If you keep holding onto your old ways, the ways in which the world tells us that we are safe, you will never experience the full blessings of God.
You can pray and pray and pray for God to fill you up, for God to be in every aspect of your lives, but He cannot do that if we are holding onto to the things of this world. There is no room for blessings where there is bitterness. The world will tell you not to forgive someone that hasn’t apologized. The world will tell you to worry about every step you take. The world will tell you to be jealous of your friends when they are blessed. The world will tell you to be anxious about the unknown. When you listen to the things of this world, you are not fully surrendered to God.
Romans 12:2 tells us, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing, and perfect will.” The pattern of this world is to hold on to all that bitterness. God wants to fill you up, but He has no room in your hearts when it is full of everything that holds us back.
Proverbs 3:5-6 tells us, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” If I was to just have to rely on my own ways to make it in this world, the path would not be straight. We must empty ourselves in order to fully trust in the Lord. The Scripture doesn’t say to trust in the Lord with part of your heart, it tells us to trust with our entire heart and in all of our ways submit to him.
It is so scary to fully give everything to God. We, as humans, want to be in control, and for us to fully surrender, we have to realize that God is in control of our lives. No matter how much we pray about a situation in our lives, whether it’s financial, relationship with family, personal fears…God cannot fully transform our lives if we aren’t in a state of complete surrender.
Have you fully surrendered yourself to Jesus? Can you sing the words, “I surrender all, I surrender all, All to Thee my blessed Savior, I surrender all,” and truly mean it? I am working on fully surrendering to Jesus every day, and it is so hard. I want to see and feel Jesus in every part of my life, so I know full surrender must happen. I pray that you will join me in completely surrendering everything we have to Christ.
This week’s recipe features two fall favorites: apples and turnips. Turnips are one of my favorite vegetables and are definitely overlooked. This delicious warm side dish will be perfect for a cool, autumn night or on your Thanksgiving table this year. I hope you love it as much as my family does.
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you. Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast.” 1 Peter 5:6-10
November 1, 2024
