I’ve been spending quality time with women friends lately, noticing a common theme arising from our conversations – surrender. We’re raising the white flags, relinquishing crippling overwhelm, looming vocational transitions, financial concerns, challenges with our children, and for some marriage and partnership turmoil.
We’re finding controlling our relationships won’t work, goals aren’t panning out, charting new life courses takes time, patience and discernment, adult children need to learn from their mistakes, being parents can be just plain hard sometimes, and overwhelm isn’t productive.
Yet, the surrendering we’re yearning for isn’t the sort of a prisoner surrendering to an enemy. It’s a spiritual surrendering, the deeper knowing that ‘letting go, letting God’ is the only way to true freedom, and the God we’re surrendering to is good, great, all-loving and all-knowing.
My company of beautiful women friends hear a choir of angels beckoning, singing us a deeper tune, “give up, and enter the narrow gate.”
We’re taking a left hand turn to unknown destinations, onto unpaved roads, listening deep within our souls to the song rising through centuries in the Psalms, “be still and know I am God.”
In holy surrender we move into the emptiness and vastness of new life, into a great silence, into the territory like a billion universes and a trillion stars, into the great mystery, the womb of the omnipotent God. As we venture like astronauts into God’s center, gravity shifts, tight grasps loosen, and consciousness widens as we begin a sort of living prayer, surrendering from chronos to kairos – moving into God’s divine time, space and seasons.
Holy surrender opens wide the door to radical faith, a call to believe and trust in the God of promise and blessings, and to know as Julian of Norwich’s once said, “All shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.”
It’s fitting I write this week after Easter, a time when new life bursts forth from death. Just three days earlier in the first Century heat, Jesus cried out in holy surrender on the cross, “it is done”. His work on earth as he knew it was complete. Yet, in the course of three days, from Good Friday, to Holy Saturday, to Easter Sunday, divine work stewed in darkness. In the cocoon of Christ’s death, new life formed wings for the resurrection ahead, a resurrection that would change the world.
In holy surrender we enter our own Holy Saturday seasons of waiting, of entering the cocoon of God’s grace, moving into beingness, nowness, into abiding in God, into the natural rhythm of life no different than a chick forming in it’s shell, a butterfly in it’s metamorphosis.
Holy surrender is a time to relax, let go, and cease striving as we enter into God’s love. As Sarah Bessey says, “living loved we relax our expectations, our efforts, our strivings, our rules, our spine, our breath, our plans, our job descriptions and checklists, we step off the treadmill of the world and the treadmill of religious performance.”
Holy surrender is a grand rest. A Holy Vacation. Just as we give up our days to slumber, in holy surrendering we relinquish the world as we know it, letting go of the control switches, submitting to God.
Frederick Buechner says “sleep is a laying down of arms to die to ourselves”. Just the same, holy surrendering is a time we die to ourselves.
Jesus tells us “truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit”. -John 12:24
And “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself”. Luke 9:23
Webster’s dictionary says, surrendering is ‘to yield power to another’.
Holy surrender is heeding the call of Jesus’ words in the gospel of Matthew,“take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart.”
As we yield to the power of Christ, becoming branches on the vine, we also stand on holy ground, in the land of promises, of milk and honey, where joy, truth and miracles bloom, a territory where ‘mountains and forests burst into song, the trees clap their hands’ and ‘springs rise up from the desert’.
As we move into a season of holy surrender, let us remember Jesus’ words, ““Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom”.- Luke 12:32
And remember, God “is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us”. – Ephesians 3:20
Will you join me in Holy Surrendering this week? I invite you to write down one scripture or quote from today’s blog and make it your week’s prayer!
As always, we love your comments!
Hi Kathy! There is so much joy in surrender, and yet it seems so foreign. We are all told to keep striving, keep moving and sometimes all we can do simply isn’t enough. We need God. We need Him to move those mountains because we just can’t do it alone.
It’s empowering and humbling to know this. I hope to do more of it now that I am faced with a small medical problem. Small in the scheme of things, but very aggravating. Surrender. Let go. All so counter-intuitive, but so true and right.
Sounds like you have an amazing group of women to meet with. What a blessing!
We will all do well to enter into this holy surrender. I know for myself that surrender is not at all easy. I often try to do so much on my own, only to find that the only way that works is when I fully surrender to God.
Thank you for putting out the call and encouraging me to choose a scripture to meditate on. I choose Luke 12:32. I love the tone of the loving Father comforting his children. It’s as if he’s saying, ‘it’s okay, don’t worry, I will take care of you. And by the way, I have so much more in store for you.’ That’s just beautiful.
Hi Marva, you are so right, it is not easy..and I find it take deep prayer, intention, and support of
a community who can remind us to surrender. We all hold so tightly to what we think is more important..
I love Luke 12:32..and your words about this scripture are beautiful..to become like little children again..with an all-loving parent. Thank you for your visiting. You blessed me with your words.
I’ve chosen John 12:24 to as my scripture verse. Thank you for suggesting the challenge. Even in surrender I want to do, figure out what it means to surrender and the how. Over and over lately I see messages of ceasing to strive and let go of my achieving for my identity. I love how you call surrender a Holy Vacation. I’ll be thinking about this all day. Thank you!
Hi Lynn..beautiful John 12:24~I am praying this along with you..may we remind one another! Love your visit Lynn!
This is so beautifully written! I love how you talk about holy surrender. It’s not easy, but day by day, we get closer to this goal, to handing over more things to God. And the times we do, we find the journey is much better than the times we don’t, even if the path is hard either way. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you Gina for your encouragement and visiting..your words are true, day by day, step by step on the path
helps us remember to relinquish all! Blessings to you!
Lovely thoughts on the holiness of surrender. “As we venture like astronauts into God’s center, gravity shifts, tight grasps loosen, and consciousness widens as we begin a sort of living prayer”. Yes, to begin a sort of living prayer! Blessings! Visiting your from Purposeful Faith.
Hi Sandra, lovely to have you visit!
Ahhh, surrender is on my heart lately too! What a beautiful post, calling us to be still, let God and to rest in Him. So happy to be your neighbor today at Intentional Tuesday!
Ahh! So many of us Ellen are yearning for surrender! So glad we can encourage one another, it’s not always easy! So good to have you visit again!
Surrender is my word for 2016 so it was good to read your reflections here. It is hard to let go of control and give it to God, but I’m learning that there is a peace and freedom to be found in doing that. Great reminder to “be still and know that I am God.”
What a wonderful word for 2016..surely with your intention God will continue to guide you!
Kathy,
The Spirit is on the move…I’ve been praying Ephesians 3:14-21 on and off for at least 6 months. Your post resonated with me ….and we both mentioned Julian of Norwich in our posts….For me, part of learning to surrender to God is asking for the grace to truly trust His heart for me is good. I know it in my head and in my heart, but not fully so I pray for grace to trust fully…blessings to you 🙂
How the spirit is moving! I love you’ve been praying Ephesians..how wonderful! I also know what you mean to
have faith to receive God’s grace to believe the promises of all good..in some ways even the struggle is
a faithful struggle since you yearn..always so lovely having you come by!
I needed this this evening. Thank you. My favorite – “spiritual surrendering, the deeper knowing that ‘letting go, letting God’ is the only way to true freedom, and the God we’re surrendering to is good, great, all-loving and all-knowing.”
This is a truth to return to over and over again. <3
I’m so happy Kasia that this speaks to you and I hope this quote will be a sort of prayer for you! It surely is for me!
Thanks for coming by!
Amen. Upon surrender, the true light and grace of God enters and fulfills the soul’s destiny…to be one with the Almighty! The Holy Spirit indwelt in all of us upon birth is awaiting acknowledgment. Don’t let the human side of your be-ing get in the way! Aloha.
I love the way you phrased that “upon surrender, the true light and grace of God enters and fulfils the soul’s
destiny”..that is gorgeous! And Vicki, I wrote about my infant baptism a while ago, and really felt the Holy Spirit
indwelt that life seemed to dull..only Christ showed me the way back to reclaiming this great gift of God!
Beautiful!
I love how you tie the act of surrendering into Easter. Jesus was the truest example of letting go control, wasn’t He? Holy surrender as a time of grand rest is luring me in… exactly what I need!
Thanks so much for visiting Ashley and I hope you find that true rest in surrendering all to God…blessings!
Thank you for your tribute to Holy Surrender…dear Kathy. Like Carly, Surrender is my word for 2016. I choose Luke 9:23 “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself.” I have heard this phrase many a time throughout my Catholic education but never truly understood it until this year, when I began to work deeply on the concept of surrender. Becoming the parent of adult children, a mother-in-law and grandmother has been one of the greatest practices in learning the art of surrender. My husband and I still have much to learn to surrender to the “laissez- faire” ways of our adult children. Luke’s quote, helps remind me that the most important part of our maintaining a loving and harmonious community is to “let go of our agenda” and enjoy “just being” with our children and grandchildren. Another quote that helps me alot is: “Surrender is the Intersection Between Acceptance AND Change.” I am learning that each time I truly surrender, I am more likely to experience deep joy. Katerina…. You have been a guiding angel along my road of Holy Surrender. For this, I am eternally grateful.
What a beautiful comment, Theresa..I forgot your word One Word was ‘surrender’ .. what a powerful intention..and love the
scripture you chose, the ultimate surrender. We thought parenting was easier with adult children, too, but in many ways
harder! I’m blessed to hear you’ve actually allowed this new part of your life to be a practice of surrender..not enough tools
for parents with adult children, though..so the ultimate prayer of Luke is our go-to prayer! And love the quote “Surrender is the intersection between acceptance and change!
This speaks to me, Kathy. Your messages always do. I am weak and exhausted and not feeling well- again. The stress of trying to find answers is bringing me defeat, discouragement, and disdain. And then I think, maybe it IS the stress? Sigh.
I will be re-reading your post once again, to really soak in the Divine *push* to truly trust that He “is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us”.
I’m so grateful for SO many blessings in my life- I’m steadfast on Phil 4:8 atm.
Oh yes, Chris..striving creates stress..how I know that well. How hard it is to surrender, but our faith keeps
calling us that way as we realize when striving feels like running on a treadmill. I do believe God is able to do exceedingly more
thank we ask or think. I pray you rest and restore your soul. I know the feeling of weak and exhausted and not feeling well. I
know it’s time to curl up with a good soulful book! Sending thoughts and prayers!