So, a little story about surrender. I recently heard about a new travel site called Go Skip Town. Their business model is that they plan your next getaway (the flight, the hotel, the restaurants, the excursions). The twist? Your destination is a surprise! A coworker of mine recently took a trip with this company. She and her husband had a great time. Their surprise destination was to Austin, TX where they had reservations at great local restaurants, went to a comedy show and stayed at a great hotel. She recommended it because it took away the task of booking every detail of their trip. She and her husband were able to get away and enjoy a trip without all the planning. I realize that this type of trip isn’t for everyone. Some of us don’t like surrendering our travel plans to someone else behind a screen who doesn’t know us.
But, isn’t that what life is like? Like a trip where we try so desperately to map out our own destination. And in some regards, we do make it to certain points of destination in the way and in the time that we wanted to. And that’s good and to be celebrated. But I’m certain all of us have had some sort of deviation in our life’s travels that we weren’t planning for. And had we known in advance that the detour was coming we wouldn’t have taken the trip.
I’ve had my share of “life mapping” that I’ve done. And I’ve had some deviations from travel plans that have felt more of a full-on detour than a part of the intended journey. But I’ve learned and I’m still learning the power of surrender. I’ve learned that fighting life’s detours doesn’t do anything but create stress, exhaustion, tension, strife, bitterness and envy. So if surrender is the solution, how exactly does it work? I would suggest a few points to consider:
Know who you’re surrendering to - When you take time to really understand God and His character and nature it becomes apparent that He can be trusted to lead.
Make it a daily practice – Prayer is a great way to surrender. We can daily lay our worries and cares before God and ask Him to carry our burdens.
Get comfortable with not always knowing – and realize that it can actually be your biggest strength.
Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” The amplified version says, “Trust in and rely confidently on the Lord with all your heart and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know and acknowledge and recognize Him, and He will make your paths straight and smooth [removing obstacles that block your way].” We all long for a straight path, one without any obstacles. Surrender seems to be the ticket. I know in the moments when I’ve surrendered areas of my life I’ve had the most peace and I’ve seen God move in mighty ways. May we each have an opportunity to consider where we need to surrender and trust God more. And may we find fulfillment knowing that we’re firmly on the path where God intends for us to be.
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