I Surrender - All Sons & Daughters

scripture and prayer reflection

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Lyrics

The riches of this world will fade

The treasures of our God remain

Here I empty myself to owe this world

Nothing and find everything in You

I surrender, I surrender

I surrender all to You

Take my life, a sacrifice

In You alone I'm satisfied

Here I empty myself to owe this world

Nothing and find everything in You

Everything in You

I surrender, I surrender

I surrender all to You

Not my will, but Yours be done

Not my strength, but Yours alone

Nothing else, but You oh Lord

I find everything in You

I surrender, I surrender

I surrender all to You

Romans 12:1-2

1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Philippians 3:3-4, 7-9

3 For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh— 4 though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more…

7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith.

Reflection

In his book, Surrender to Love, David Benner argues that we often confuse surrender with mere obedience. While surrender implies and necessarily includes obedience, Benner suggests that they are not the same thing — that surrender is not just behavioral compliance, but a submission of the heart motivated by love.* It is very possible to obey without surrendering, as those raising children going through defiant phases are daily reminded.

Obedience devoid of surrender fosters in us an attitude of self-sufficiency and autonomy that drives us to look to ourselves rather than God, to trust in our own power rather than His, and to pat ourselves on the back when we are acting as “good Christians” should.

When things are going well, we easily slide into the belief that it is our bible reading, our daily quiet time, our consistent church attendance that is somehow making this whole relationship-with-God thing work. These habits can even become almost like a magic ritual, viewed as somehow ensuring that we will have a good day, or that we will feel God’s presence with us, or that we will grow.

These things aren’t bad practices — God frequently uses these things to work in our hearts in beautiful ways. But when we put our trust in these acts on our part to be the driving force of our relationship with God rather than in God Himself, we lose track of the real purpose of these practices, elevating them to ends rather than means.

The end goal of reading the Bible isn’t to show what a faithful and committed follower we are; we read the Bible to encounter God through His word, to listen to His voice and learn His heart.

The end goal of a morning devotional isn’t to use quiet reflection and prayer to feel like we’ve started the day off on the right foot; we spend time in stillness and prayer in order to draw near to our Maker by quieting the competing voices that crowd our days, reorienting our hearts and lives to Him and His kingdom.

The end goal of coming to church isn’t to be the most consistent or involved church member or to take the best sermon notes or to feel something in a time of musical worship; we regularly meet with the body because it is Christ’s body, and we serve because it allows us to participate in His love for His children and the world at large.

In all of these things, God is both the means and the end. It is His Spirit that uses these practices to grow us and work in our hearts, not our own efforts. Our obedience needs to come out of a place of surrender, waiting upon the Lord to see what He will do with these practices in our lives as we faithfully engage with Him in them.

Take some time to reflect on your own life. What do you tend to trust in to help you grow and live well? Where do you tend to get off track, trusting in your own efforts rather than the Spirit? How could you engage in good practices in new ways, to push back on the tendency to trust in your own faithfulness and power? What would obedience born out of surrender (rather than simple behavioral conformity) look like in your life?

*David G. Benner, Surrender to Love: Discovering the Heart of Christian Spirituality, 2003, p. 55