Tuesday, September 13, 2016

How To Stop Living A Life Of Missed Opportunities

My Utmost For His Highest
 
I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. —John 17:4
 
“True surrender is not simply surrender of our external life but surrender of our will— and once that is done, surrender is complete. The greatest crisis we ever face is the surrender of our will. Yet God never forces a person’s will into surrender, and He never begs. He patiently waits until that person willingly yields to Him. And once that battle has been fought, it never needs to be fought again.[…] He says, “If you want to be My disciple, you must give up your right to yourself to Me.” And once this is done, the remainder of your life will exhibit nothing but the evidence of this surrender, and you never need to be concerned again with what the future may hold for you. Whatever your circumstances may be, Jesus is totally sufficient (see 2 Corinthians 12:9 and Philippians 4:19). […] And after you surrender— then what? Your entire life should be characterized by an eagerness to maintain unbroken fellowship and oneness with God.”  CHAMBERS
 
It doesn’t matter if you are a stay-at-home mom, a business executive, you ride around on the back of a trash truck, or you are a missionary in a faraway land.  You must surrender your will to God to accomplish God’s purpose in your life.  To experience the abundant life that Jesus said is ours.  Jesus said (John 10:10) that He was bringing more life, better life than we were capable of experiencing. In 1 John 5:12 we are told that if we have Jesus, we have life and if we don’t have Jesus, we don’t have life.  The key to experiencing that life is surrender. An easy thing to think about, a hard thing to do.  The reason is that surrender requires trust and trust requires faith.  So, if you are not surrendered to the Lord it is because you  lack faith.  Until you are surrendered, you will live a life of missed opportunities.  Opportunities to experience the peace and joy, the fruit of the Spirit in your life no matter what maybe happening around you.
 
I just had a mental picture of that.  In one of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, the main villain has just had his plans upended by the good guys and his ship is being blown apart.  (The part I am referring to) The scene is where he is walking down the stairs to the deck of the ship and parts of the ship are flying all around him.  But he walks on, calmly, seemingly impervious to the calamity around him.  It is that picture that I have of the Saint, walking through life.  There is calamity all about, but the Saint walks on.  Living his life with peace and joy in spite of the challenges of living this earthly life.  You have got to give it up. What is “it”?  Your will and want to live your life on your own.”  (2 Corinthians 4:8-12) “we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.  For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.  So death works in us, but life in you.”  Let your light shine.  ELGIN
 
All To Jesus I Surrender
 
All to Jesus I surrender; all to him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust him, in his presence daily live.
 
All to Jesus I surrender; humbly at his feet I bow,
worldly pleasures all forsaken; take me, Jesus, take me now.
 
All to Jesus I surrender; make me, Savior, wholly thine;
fill me with thy love and power; truly know that thou art mine.
 
All to Jesus I surrender; Lord, I give myself to thee;
fill me with thy love and power; let thy blessing fall on me.
 
All to Jesus I surrender; now I feel the sacred flame.
O the joy of full salvation! Glory, glory, to his name!
I surrender all ….

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