I surrender all .. well almost all

My Utmost For His Highest

When I think of my salvation experience, I think of being delivered from sin and gaining personal holiness. But salvation is so much more! It means that the Spirit of God has brought me into intimate contact with the true Person of God Himself. And as I am caught up into total surrender to God, I become thrilled with something infinitely greater than myself…..In our surrender, we must give ourselves to God in the same way He gave Himself for us— totally, unconditionally, and without reservation. The consequences and circumstances resulting from our surrender will never even enter our mind, because our life will be totally consumed with Him. CHAMBERS

Do you think about God that way?  Is He your BFF – best friend forever? Or is He someone more like the President … You know who the President is, but it’s not like he invites you over for dinner.  The life we live as Christians is a relational one not just a positional one … what I mean is that as a Christian you are positionally ‘in Christ’  but you are relationally also a son or daughter of the most high God.

“Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.” (1 John 3:1)

Do you ever think about how incredible that is?  An earthly father can love you and provide for you … but your Father in heaven can do exceedingly abundantly more than we can ask or think … (Ephesians 3:20)  And how much more does He love you?  He sent His Son to save you.  Why wouldn’t you want to spend time with Him? 

When we follow the Lord there are things in our lives that get in the way of that relationship.  Things that were OK by the world’s standards but not by God’s.  So we gave them up … but sometimes we begin to think that maybe we should have hung on to them … or worse … we gave them up physically but we hung on to them in our heart.  We were still devoted to them … we still wanted them to be part of our life … If we love God there will be no room for those things … the will have lost their attractiveness.  Paul said he considered those things as rubbish or dung.  Pretty strong words.  But he wanted to let us know just how insignificant .. ever repulsive … the things he once valued over God were to him.

“But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith;” (Philippians 3:7-9)

I have heard many testimonies over the years and one thing I have noticed is that what we have forsaken can almost become a prideful thing … we replace on obstacle in our faith with another.  We boast in what we have given up, not in amazement, but as a point that we should be acknowledged .. even admired … for our ‘great’ faith.  Do not be deceived .. the Flesh is strong and it will find a way to assert itself … how do you combat it?  Draw close to God and He will draw close to you … Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord and He will lift you up.  It’s something to think about ….

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)