Surrender.

About a week ago, I was reading Jeremiah 38. At this point in the book, the threat of the Chaldeans' invasion was hanging over Judah. Earlier in the book, God had said that if Israel and Judah repented of their sin and idolatry and turned back to follow Him, He would relent of the foretold destruction. Now, at this point, it was too late for that. Israel and Judah refused to listen. But the Lord in His mercy offered them another option, which He presented through Jeremiah to Zedekiah the king of Judah.

 "Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, "Thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: If you will surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then your life shall be spared, and this city shall not be burned with fire, and you and your house shall live. But if you do not surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you shall not escape from their hand." -Jeremiah 38:17-18

For some reason, this really stuck out to me. The word "surrender" caught my eye. As I thought about it, I realized that it made perfect sense in a military perspective- you know, "Surrender now, and your lives will be spared" etc., etc.  But to me, it still sounded strange. God was telling them to surrender? It doesn't seem to make sense from a spiritual perspective. My thought was, Are we not to be actively fighting against the enemy, refusing to give in? When I thought about it again, I realized that the Chaldeans were not the enemy in that situation. No, in fact, they were an instrument of God's will. The real enemy is selfishness, stubbornness, and pride. All these things are a hindrance in faith. God had a plan to save and redeem His people, but for these reasons, the people weren't willing to trust Him. Selfish concerns must have risen in hearts. Stubborn attitudes ignoring Him. Pride, people thinking that their plan is better than God's.  These are the obstructions to be fought; they are the fiery darts of the evil one.

When God wanted the people to surrender to the Chaldeans, He really was asking them to surrender to Him. It was all part of His plan. But what does it really mean to surrender? I looked up several definitions (on dictionary.com) of the word, but these were the first three:

1.	to yield (something) to the possession or power of another; deliver up possession of on demand or under duress: to surrender the fort to the enemy; to surrender the stolen goods to the police.

2.	to give (oneself) up, as to the police.

3.	to give (oneself) up to some influence, course, emotion, etc.:He surrendered himself to a life of hardship.

I really like these three, because I think they really apply to how God wants us to surrender ourselves. Translated in simple words, He wants us to surrender our possessions, our bodies, and our lifestyle to Him.

By "possessions" I do not refer simply to physical possessions. Often, He asks us to surrender an attitude, one that is not glorifying to Him.  Selfishness, greed, rebellion, pride... all those attitudes that quietly slip into our hearts. Sometimes He asks us to surrender a physical possession, maybe one that we are a little too attached to. Sometimes He asks us to surrender a worry or a fear to Him- which, oddly, is easier said than done. He gently asks us to let Him carry our burdens.

Surrendering our bodies means offering up ourselves as a vessel of service in the Kingdom. It means letting Christ use us however He wants to- and He will most definitely use us if we let Him! It means being committed to serving Him in whatever way He presents us with.  It means sacrificing our time and energy. It means sacrificing some of the things that we as humans naturally seek after, like spare time to dote on ourselves.

The third definition just drives the other two farther into the heart. All this sacrificing that we are to do for Christ- it's not a one-time only thing. It's not a short bargain or deal. It's a lifestyle. It's a continuous, dedicated, focused effort. It begins in the little choices, like how to spend free time. It's an every-day dying to self. It's hard. Nowhere in the Bible does it ever say that taking up your cross daily is easy! But I know that it is so worth it. When I think of the contrary, I think of wallowing in guilt and misery. If we take up our cross daily, the Lord will reward us. We will reap the benefits in Christ!

I know God is calling me to surrender to Him, in so many different ways. "Surrender to Me. Let go of your own will, fall back in My arms. Trust my plan for your life. Do not fear; be still and know that I am God. Seek my will for your life. Search for delight in me, and you will find true joy."

Surrender. Who knew there could be so much victory in Christ behind the word?