Surrender to Create Breakthroughs

 

Galatians 2:20

“I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

 

Matthew 16:24-25

Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”

 

I want to breakthrough this year.  I dubbed my year of 2018 as the year of breakthroughs.

But first, I must surrender all to Jesus.

I sit in my living room today, thinking what does surrender look like. Am I truly surrendered to Him?

I fight my own will and desires. I fight my own battles of the mind; and I squander my time to things that really do not matter.

Do I really forsake all to Him?

Do you forsake all to Him?

How can I surrender all to Him as a wife and mother?

Surrendering all to Him starts with forsaking my will for His will. He desires my marriage to be fruitful. He desires my husband and I to become one flesh. He wills my husband to love me as Christ loved the church and for me to surrender to my husband, to obey him.

Obeying a man in the time of contemporary feminism seems so foreign and opposite to what the world teaches, but that is what Christ wills for me.

My husband must do his part too. He must love me so much he would be willing to die for me; so if I extend that idea out: my husband wants my best. He wants me to succeed in my walk with Christ; so, he will guide me as Christ guides him. He does nothing to harm me. He does not abuse me, neglect me. He does not use me.

I write this post for the Five Minute Friday community today. I know, I am out of time on this post. Five minutes are over at this point. I will expand some more beyond five minutes below. I hope you will read on.

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Steps To Surrender All

My life falters when I do not surrender my all. I cannot experience through breakthroughs if I do not start at the feet of Christ.

He is my all and my Lord.

Today, I pray for true guidance from Him. I surrender to Him.

I pray that I become a better wife and mother.

Are you in agreement if then so start with these seven steps to surrender.

1. Starting the day with prayer and His Holy Word.
2. Looking for ways to serve Him in my daily life. I mirror my daily tasks to focus on how Jesus would want me to serve my husband and my daughter. You can do the same. If you are married, the Bible has key ways for a wife to serve her husband. Proverbs 31 is a great starting point.
3. I seek to serve as a model for my daughter on what true love and surrender look like. I try to encourage her spiritual growth by encouraging prayer and daily Bible reading. I encourage her to seek God in all things. Pray daily about her future. If you are not a mother or wife, you can do the same for those closest to you: friends, family, coworkers.
4. I wait on the Lord for He is my strength. I don’t attempt to rush His working in the lives of my loved ones. I surrender it all to Him in prayer and faith.
5. What if I were single? I look for ways to serve my community through my church. Church is important whether you are single or married. You surrender to Christ when you stay in a committed body of people living out the New Testament Church.
6.  Then I serve in my job; where Christ places me. I live a life of purity that exemplifies Him.
7. I end my day in prayer seeking forgiveness when I fail and strength to carry on for the next day. I also try to end my day in devotions with my husband and daughter, reading the Word together before we go to bed.

I know all these steps are easier said than done. Christianity is a life-style choice. It is a daily walk of sacrifice, but with the sacrifice comes victory, joy, and peace because I know that my future is secure.

What  Life Will Reveal When I Surrender All

No magic list exists to create a wonderful life.

The closest thing we have to living that wonderful life involves growing in Christ spiritually.

When we truly surrender does that mean temptations cease? Problems disappear? Life becomes a vacation of ease and luxury?

No, it does not. We still have tribulations (John 16:33), but we find true peace in the midst of those tribulations. We find strength to overcome and forsake those mistakes or sins holding us back in life. We can move forward in peace and love knowing that no matter what happens, we have a God who has our back. He will see us through any problems that we have to live through.

We will not even see this happening at the time of the problems. Often it is with hindsight that we realize, “Awe that is what you were up to God. Thank you.” Other times, I believe we will not see why until we reach Heaven and He wipes our tears away and reveals all to us.

Sin really does bring death. Drugs and alcohol kill.  Bad decision can lead to poverty and blessings being withheld. Look at the problems we have in this country with drug addiction; the violence of shootings almost daily; murder; crime, and death. These problems start when people choice their own direction; give into the love of sin, violence, and darkness.

My Life Today: Light and Peace because I Surrender

I am reading a wonderful book this week by my friend Susan B. Mead: Don’t Go Through Life Naked: How to Clothe Yourself in God’s Power.” (an affiliate link. Good news today and tomorrow you an get your e-copy for free! Then for the next five days buying your copy will only cost .99 cents. If you purchase, I will receive a small percentage of the sale, but more importantly a bigger portion of the sale will go the Proverbs 31 Ministry.)

Susan validates my thoughts on surrender today when she quotes Isaiah 40: 31 :

 But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] shall change and renew their strength and power; they shall lift their wings and mount up [close to God] as eagles [mount up to the sun]; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint or become tired.

I hope you will stand in the promises of this verse today.

Please also stay tuned for a complete review of Susan’s wonderful book on Tuesday as I kick off my Tuesday’s Book Thoughts and Reviews feature.

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I will join other great linkup parties listed on my Linkup parties page. Be sure to check it out today for other great blogs to read.