Offer yourselves to the ways of God (Romans 6:17 ) TM
Surrender isn’t just the best way to live, it’s the only way to live. Years ago Ed and I had these wonderful Sunday School teachers, Charlie and Carolyn Franklin, along with Carolyn’s brother Billy. We learned so much from these guys about how to walk a Christian life. Billy made this statement one time and I have never forgotten it. “The victory is not in the fight, but in the surrender.” Don’t you know that all other approaches lead to frustration, disappointment, and self destruction. The Bible calls surrender, “your reasonable service” (Rom 12:1). Your wisest moments will be those when you say “yes” to God.
Sometimes it takes years, but eventually you discover that the greatest hindrance to God’s blessing is–you! You cannot fulfill God’s purposes for you life while focusing exclusively on your own plans. If God’s going to do His deepest work in you, it’ll begin with surrender. So give it all to God: your past regrets, your present problems, your future ambitions, your fears, dreams, weaknesses, habits, hurts, and hang ups. Put Jesus in the driver’s seat-and take your hands off the wheel. Don’t be afraid; nothing under His control can ever be out of control.
One of the greatest Christian leaders of the 20th Century is Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade. Through the Four Spiritual Laws tract, and the Jesus film (seen by over 4 billion), and over 150 million people have been won to Christ. When asked why God used him so much, Bill replied: “When I was a young man I made a contract with God. I literally wrote it out and signed my name at the bottom. It said, “From this day forward I am a slave of Jesus Christ.” Think maybe you need a contract with God too?
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