Surrender, it’s all downhill from here.

 

Over the weekend I was going through many piles of old notes, writings and poetry...trying to separate the wheat from the chaff I guess. In an earlier post I mention that I used to put out a Fathering Newsletter for a few years, well, I found something that spoke to me again. I wrote about surrender and gravity, both of which have tremendous pull. So, if you'll be so kind and pardon the remix of an old "post" I think there is something Father wants to speak to us all. Blessings, Jay

“At the back of it there lies the central citadel of obstinacy: I will not give up my
right to myself--the thing God intends you to give up if ever you are going to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.” Oswald Chambers

My son Matt and I were watching some of the Gravity Games (remember those?) one Sunday afternoon, the 6-man street luge competition I believe it was. The competitors hurl themselves on these oversize skateboards downhill at speeds reaching 60 mph just inches from the hard reality of asphalt. Six lugers begin each race, but rarely do they all finish. Navigating tight turns as they hurtle downhill, wipeouts are common. With their feet serving as their only brakes, (kinda like the Flintstones) the first competitor to cross the finish line wins.

I looked at my son and I could sense that he was thinking of how he could fabricate the baby stroller into his own version of a land speeder to imitate these “athletes”. Of course it was my duty to tell him the truth. That these guys were basically criminally insane and were taking part in some governmental experiment only to be returned to their cells after the test was over. He didn’t buy that of course, but the threat of kitchen duty for his remainder of life was enough to convince him of the wisdom to stay away from this particular gravity game.

Lately I feel just like one of those lugers, except in a more spiritual sense (although I KNOW I would be praying if I was streaking downhill on one of those hurt machines). The gravity game I been participating in recently has been just as intense, it’s called surrender. Instead of feet for brakes, I have only my will to stop from hurling down the hill of self-denial. Still, the gravity of God’s purpose for me pulls me to my knees and helps me to let go and fly into His will.

Surrender to Him has scared me in the past; it was an unsure place for me to go. I thought it meant a loss of identity, a loss of freedom, a place where I would disappear. I have found just the opposite, surrendering has set me free, restored who I really am in Him and shown me how much I am visible to the Father.

Our Heavenly Father wants us to be surrender “lugers”, throwing our weight down and letting it go…all the way into His design and purposes for our lives. The Father is at the bottom of the hill, calling our name, just waiting to celebrate.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5

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