And thanks be to God, for in the past you were servants of sin, but now your obedience is heart deep, and your life is being molded by truth through the teaching you are devoted to. And now you celebrate your freedom from your former master—sin. You’ve left its bondage, and now God’s perfect righteousness holds power over you as his loving servants.
Romans 6:17-18
To yield is to give up and cease resistance or in other words to surrender. It seems that surrender can look different throughout our life with Christ. When I think of surrender my immediate thought goes to obedience. When the Lord asks me to do something I may not want to do I think of myself letting go and yielding to what He has asked of me. Initially surrender produces obedience because we are letting go of things that would keep us from the Lord or doing what He has asked of us.
Today I want to focus on what it looks like to surrender over sin, burdens, and the daily hinderances that keep us captive. I had recently struggled with anxiety and panic attacks. . it would come whenever it wanted and frequently. After having some pretty yucky panic attacks I decided to reach out to someone and share only a portion of my problems. I mostly wanted her to pray for me; without hesitation she did just that. She had prayed perfectly into my wrestling with life and the Lord. Sometime int the prayer she had prayed something like "entering a season of surrender, even more surrender." This surrender feels like giving over the things I try to lay down at the throne but run back to and pick up again because I think I can handle it on my own.
Has anyone ever told you to lay your burdens down at the feet of Jesus and not to pick it up again? What if we've attached ourselves to that thing we chose to lay down and it continues to weigh us down. It is through daily surrender that we find freedom from our innate sinful nature but because of the blood of Jesus and the yes you gave Him you are free from sin. There may be things you need to surrender over and over again. There may be one thing that you are surrendering but taking up again because you haven't fully trusted the Lord to take care of it so you attach yourself to it and when you walk away the tether pulls you back. Release yourself from the burden you are still in bondage to. There is freedom in surrender, that freedom is yours for the taking. He came so that we would be set free from everything that weighs us down. Abundant living is your portion through Christ Jesus. It's up to you to cease striving and yield to the Father.
Take time today to lay down your sins, burdens and hinderances before the Lord. If your not sure what it is that is keeping you from full surrender ask Him to reveal it and then hand it over to Him. You dont have to do it alone.. The Father is always ready to come alongside you. Just let Him have it all.
My Prayer for you
Father, Thank you for the atoning blood of Jesus that has come to set the captives free. Lord we know there is freedom in surrender. We want to live in that habitual state of yielding to you and taking hold of the abundant life you have for us. Reveal to us what we need to let go of and as you do it become so easy to surrender it to you. We don't want to be attached to anything that does not bring you glory. Father as we lay down our burdens, fears, sins, and thoughts we walk away lighter with freedom. You can have it all Lord, It's whatever you say. Grow us, take all of us you can have it we surrender. In Jesus Holy and precious name
Amen.
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