part two

Surrender to God - Why it's the Superior ChoiceSo, what's the point of surrendering to God? If we've already blown it so badly, what's the point of choosing God's way now? After all, the Bible tells us that the world we live in is lost and perishing. This is where the good news comes in! Because God loves His creation, He hasn't cast us from paradise forever. He continues to give us a choice. The world around us may be suffering the results of sin, but each person -- you, I and everyone we encounter -- still has the opportunity to choose to obey God. As long as we have breath, we have that choice.
Surrender to God - What are You Clinging To?Look back for a moment at the story of Adam and Eve. If they had surrendered to God, rather than listening to the serpent (whom we recognize today as the devil, the angel Lucifer described in Isaiah 14, who had fallen victim to his own pride) and their own desires, it's possible our world would not be suffering the consequences. Clearly then, what God desires for us is far better than any momentary gain-but we can only know that victory if we surrender our desires, our "rights" to God. What is it that you desire today? What "right" are you clinging to, even though deep down inside you know you'd be better off if you gave it up? Do you think that voice, deep down inside, could be God giving you the same choice He gave Adam and Eve? God loved you and me so much that He willingly took on human flesh, in the person of Jesus Christ, to choose obedience and surrender for us. As our living example, Christ first surrendered His divinity in order to give us a flesh and blood God we could relate to (John 3), then He surrendered His right to be God when the devil tempted Him in the desert (Matthew 4), and finally He surrendered His right to life itself when He took upon His flesh -- His perfect sinless body --all the penalty for every human refusal to yield. Because of Him, all you and I need to do today is to place our faith in Him and obey the Word of God.
Surrender to God - A Daily ChoiceSurrender to God, obey His commands for your life, and you can know the life of abundance that He came to offer. Hold on to your rights, to what you think you own or should have, and you may be happy with a possession or two for awhile; you may even have some temporary relief from stress or longing. But what of the end result? It can be hard to think that far ahead when we are tempted by a momentary longing, but as any dieter knows, longings for what is perishing are always momentary. If we ride them out, by choosing obedience, we find that the desire is gradually defeated. Victory through Christ is within our grasp, if we choose to surrender to God whatever has a stranglehold on us. Obey Him, even if you don't really want to right now, and discover the genuine, eternal satisfaction that can only come from surrendering to God. Like me, you may find that surrendering "wants" and "rights" is difficult to do. When I want ice cream, I really want it! But as a lifelong dieter, I also know that if I don't surrender my wants, the long term result is something I do not desire. God has designed our world so that spiritual principles are often mirrored in the physical, if we are willing to see them there. If you are, and if you'll desire God's ways above your own, simply ask Him to show you when you are being tempted by your own desires. Unlike receiving the gift of salvation, which is ours the moment we ask Christ into our hearts, surrender to God is a choice we must make with every breath. Do a few deep breathing exercises right now-god's way in, my way out. You may not be happy about it right now, but in the bigger picture of life, you'll be glad you chose to surrender to God.