“Beware of stopping anywhere short of total surrender to God.”
Oswald Chambers
“Aren’t you glad God called you to write?” A spiritual father asked me this question a few years ago. At the time, I could honestly answer him, “Yes,” unlike the many years prior, during the struggle of becoming a writer. Just like Gideon and Moses, I met God’s call to write with resistance and feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt. At one point I made a lengthy list of all the reasons why God asked the wrong woman to write for Him. His response to me was “That’s exactly why I chose you, so that I would receive all the glory.” Trevor Hudson writes, “Awareness of a personal call usually evokes deep feeling of resistance.”
Initially, I resisted agreeing to put an offer down on our current house, in Wichita. I discerned it wasn’t the house I was resisting; it was the move to Wichita that I resisted. I am so grateful I pushed through the resistance and surrendered to God in both the writing journey and the move to Wichita because they have become great blessings in my life.
Resistance may be the enemy’s hand to prevent us from becoming who God created us to be, the very thing that causes us to experience joy and abundant living. The apostle John’s words give me hope. “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).
Surrendering to God is the antidote for resistance. When I sense I am butting my head or will against a wall, I’ll name what I’m feeling and then ask God to help me discern what I’m resisting and why I’m resisting it. It is often related to fear. Resistance alerts us to the enemy’s scheme and our outright rebellion against God. Don’t give in to your resistance; instead, wave your white flag and yield your will over to God’s desires. Place your trust in God and pray, “Not my will, but Yours be done.”
Release your resistance and relinquish any need for control. Submit to God, trust in His sovereign outcomes, and rest in His character. Be like a skydiver, as they let go of the security of the airplane, putting their trust in the parachute. Apply the art of surrendering to God, letting go of your resistance to discover His peace that surpasses all understanding.
“In our surrender, we must give ourselves to God in the same way He gave Himself for us – totally, unconditionally, and without reservation.”
Oswald Chambers
Relevant Reflections:
In what area of your life are you experiencing resistance? Ask God for discernment and understanding of the reasons behind the resistance.
How can you release your resistance and surrender to God?
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