Tag: Surrender

Who is Guarding Your Heart?

Let’s release our hearts to God, the only one who can heal us.

Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

~ Proverbs 4:23 (NIV)

Last year, my heart felt tender. After experiencing betrayal and rejection from a once-close family member, it was as if my heart was on a chopping block and every person in my life was given a knife to use at their own discretion.

Some chose to lay down their knives and offer bandages instead. But others dug deeper into my open wounds with their sharp blades.

Over time, my heart grew tough in an effort to protect itself. If I’m made of metal, a knife can’t slice through and damage me any further.

It worked, in a sense. Insensitive words and painful situations didn’t have the same impact on me. I felt emboldened to go out into the world and decide who was worthy of my trust.

But guarding my heart on my own strength came at a great loss–to myself and to those around me.

After training my heart not to feel, I struggled to empathize with my friends when they shared their heartbreaks with me. I began to scrutinize every relationship, trying to judge whether or not these people mirrored any traits from my past offenders. I alone had to determine whether or not I was safe.

Living in a world surrounded by concrete walls isn’t really living at all.

It felt as if I had lost the best parts of myself, in addition to doubting my community. God calls us to love others, but how could I love–an extremely vulnerable action–when I couldn’t trust?

So then…was I failing God?


And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:7

Thankfully, God didn’t leave me in this empty, searching place. He drew me closer to Him through His Word and teaching, as well as the faithfulness of friends who didn’t give up on me.

Most importantly, He reminded me that I’m not in charge of guarding my own heart.

Yes, we must exercise discernment in our lives. But we must surrender our hearts to God so that He can protect us. He’s the only one who can provide us security and safety while allowing our hearts to remain moldable and open to love.

Surrender requires sacrificing our own safety net and battle plan. But we’re releasing ourselves to the only One in control, who has the greatest plan.

When we try to guard our own hearts, we end up hardening them instead. A hardened heart isn’t open to love or transformation, but God will still accept your hardened heart and turn it back to flesh.

God doesn’t promise a life free from suffering and pain, even when we surrender our hearts to Him. But He does promise peace through Jesus, who has already overcome the world.

When we rely on His grace and peace for our security, rooting ourselves in being children of God rather than allowing others to determine our worth, we will find our hearts’ desire.

And that, my friend, is the unconditional and unchanging love of Jesus.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

John 16:33

If you are weary and broken, go to Him.

If you are empty and depleted, go to Him.

If you are rejoicing and hope-filled, go to Him.

If you don’t know who you are or what comes next, go to Him.

Jesus is waiting with open arms to receive you. He is worthy of our trust. ❤

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

Ezekiel 36:26

My Season of Surrender

How might God be calling you to surrender today?

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.

Romans 12:1 (NIV)

Surrender. An uncomfortable word in a society that prides itself on independence, personal victory, and chasing dreams.

I won’t pretend that surrendering is easy. I struggle with it every day. It involves sacrificing everything–our desires, thoughts, relationships, lives–to God.

While He is worthy of our lives (after all, He created us), it can be difficult to trust Him when we can’t see Him in physical form. We aren’t often enlightened with a glimpse of our future. We must simply present each decision to the Lord and trust that His way is better than our own.

Spoiler alert: my “season” of surrender wasn’t a period of months or years. It was just the beginning of a lifetime of choosing God over myself.

My journey to surrender began with a choice rooted in faith. I quit my job–at a church. This not only meant a loss of income/stability, but I walked away from my church community without a clear path of where God wanted me next. I just knew He was calling me away, and I had to say yes to the first step before I could take the next step.

The first thing I did after my exit interview was load up the dishwasher while listening to Hillsong’s worship song, I Surrender. As I sung along, my broken melody wasn’t mere words. It was a promise to God that from this day forward, I would try to surrender.

God’s grace is sufficient, even when we fail to surrender and choose our own path. I am so thankful, since I have fallen short of surrender time and again.

Surrendering to God has led me to godly community, but not in the way I would’ve chosen.

At the start of my church search, if you had asked me to describe what I was looking for in a new church, I would’ve answered “young adult community.” But God led me to a church with very few young adults. He’s affirmed over and over that this is where He wants me to be–which has led to healing, growth, and a shift in perspective.

In my professional life, I planned to secure a full-time job and publish my books after college. However, I experienced a series of rejections, which led me to join another writing program while continuing in my part-time job instead. God showed me that He is going to provide in unorthodox ways, and I need to deepen my skills before I can publish the stories He’s placed on my heart.

God’s choice for us is often the humble choice. The choice with less earthly glory or praise. The path that follows this choice will involve detours and pitstops. And it always requires trust and reliance on God.

My journey began two years ago, and each day I’m given the same choice. Will I release my desire for control in order to embrace God’s plan for me?

How might God be calling you to surrender today?

His plan for you is far more beautiful than anything you could plan for yourself. Even if the road ahead seems bleary, trust that the end result will lead to a closer relationship with your heavenly Father, who loves you eternally.

To humans belong the plans of the heart,
    but from the Lord comes the proper answer of the tongue.

2 All a person’s ways seem pure to them,
    but motives are weighed by the Lord.

3 Commit to the Lord whatever you do,
    and he will establish your plans.

4 The Lord works out everything to its proper end—
    even the wicked for a day of disaster.

5 The Lord detests all the proud of heart.
    Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished.

6 Through love and faithfulness sin is atoned for;
    through the fear of the Lord evil is avoided.

7 When the Lord takes pleasure in anyone’s way,
    he causes their enemies to make peace with them.

8 Better a little with righteousness
    than much gain with injustice.

9 In their hearts humans plan their course,
    but the Lord establishes their steps.

Proverbs 16:1-9 (NIV)

Let Your Will Be Done

Do you long to surrender your life to God, but you aren’t sure where to start?

If you’ve been a follower of Christ for a while, you’ve likely wondered what decisions God wants you to make. Certain decisions are quite clear in the Bible: do not steal, do not murder, do not commit adultery. But other decisions, the specific ones that may lead to two good outcomes, are difficult to determine.

I’m not sure where you are on your journey. Perhaps you are just entering the job market or anticipating retirement. Maybe you have been single your whole life or you are in a serious relationship. You could be figuring out where to move or when to have kids or who to stay close with as you enter a new season of life.

As for me, I’m wrapping up my second-to-last quarter of college and trying to figure out where God wants me next. Does He want me to find a full-time job related to my major? Would He rather have me pursue another degree? Should I try exploring a different career path entirely?

A piece of advice I received related to this conundrum has stuck with me:

Acknowledge your desires, then surrender them to God.

While this advice felt solid and biblical, I wasn’t quite sure how to surrender to God. I was left with a list of all the things I wanted and a burning feeling of guilt for holding onto them.

If you are in a similar place, I assure you that you shouldn’t feel guilty for wanting things, especially things that God desires for you, such as joy, purpose, community, and love. I assumed that the surrendering process would be significant and perhaps even physical, and while it is significant and can lead to physical actions over time, the surrendering process may actually feel quite gradual.

The best person to learn from in any situation is Jesus. When crucifixion loomed overhead, He drew near to God in prayer.

36 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” 37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

39 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

Matthew 26: 36-39

Jesus didn’t deny what He wanted, but He surrendered His will to God through prayer. Sometimes, we can feel distant from God because we are afraid of telling Him what we want. We are ashamed that we have desires that haven’t been met yet. Perhaps it even seems symbolic of a lack of faith.

The pendulum can swing the other way, too. We fall into the temptation of treating God as Santa Claus, demanding what we want and feeling utterly disappointed and hopeless when He doesn’t deliver in the way we wanted.

Jesus’ model is the perfect approach to take to prevent distance and disappointment. Come to God honestly with all of your feelings and hopes and dreams. This reveals great faith and vulnerability. Admit what you long for and what weighs heavily on your heart. Then ask for God’s will to be done no matter what and pray for peace in any outcome.

You may not see instant results the first time you pray (though I hope you are filled with peace). But if you continue this practice day after day, you may find yourself shedding your old perspective and embracing one of hope and anticipation for all the amazing things God has in store for you.

If you find yourself desiring things that don’t align with God’s will, ask Him for help in this process. Slowly, but certainly, you will find yourself eager for what God has planned for you. And when you face fear, sadness, or chaos, you will always know to whom you can turn. Your loving Creator, the one who knows you best.

For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship[c] through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.

Ephesians 1:4-10

Surrendering Your Year

Reflecting on what God has taught me in 2023.

Everything is in God’s hands. I know it; you know it. But do we really believe it?

I am a worrier. I plan things out, analyze before and after situations occur, and go to great lengths to avoid problems. But this year, God has really challenged me to surrender everything to Him.

For those of us who enjoy knowing the plan or having clear goals, it can be frustrating to surrender to God because it means making decisions we wouldn’t necessarily make on our own. Sometimes, those decisions seem like straying from the path we want or disappointing people we admire. Often, especially at the beginning of the surrendering process, we have no idea where God is taking us. That’s downright frightening!

While surrendering is a very difficult process, it allows us to accept our freedom found in Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. When we surrender our hopes and dreams to God, we aren’t giving up on who He created us to be. Rather, we are aligning our will with His. We are letting go of the idea that life has to look the way we planned to be meaningful.

It’s easier to surrender our will to God’s when we spend time with Him and realize He has our best interest in mind. He loves us more than we could ever comprehend and He will always take good care of us.

Surrendering makes room for peace. The pressure isn’t on us to perform and fulfill our goals. Instead, we can take life one step at a time, only acting as God leads.

This doesn’t mean we have an excuse to be lazy or unprepared. Rather, we don’t have to worry about what life will bring. We can continue on ahead, bringing each situation to God in prayer, and making decisions that glorify Him. When things don’t turn out the way we want, we don’t have to panic. God must have something better in store.

What is your biggest takeaway from 2023? What do you hope for in 2024?

I pray that for all of us, 2024 is a year of fulfilled promises, personal growth, and a deeper relationship with God.

Jesus answered them, “Do you finally believe? In fact, you’re about to make a run for it—saving your own skins and abandoning me. But I’m not abandoned. The Father is with me. I’ve told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace. In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties. But take heart! I’ve conquered the world.”

John 16:33 (MSG)