One of the best known scenes in the New Testament is that of Jesus in the garden called Gethsemane. Here he prays while his disciples sleep. And the line we all are familiar with is this:
Abba, Father, everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will. Mark 14:36
Jesus surrenders to God.
Step Three of the Twelve Step program says this:
"We made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him."
Perhaps the most difficult thing to trust to another is our will. Turning over our will can feel like a complete loss of freedom and control.
Henry David Thoreau said: The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation. Thoreau says that people are "resigned" to certain ways of living, but that in fact, what is called "resignation" is often nothing less than "desperation".
To what have we as a society "surrendered"? To what have we as "Christians" surrendered? What has the strongest influence in your life when it comes to convincing you what you should surrender to?
What are the things you do, the disciplines you have adopted, to assist you in your quest to be more fully surrendered to Christ? To God's will for you life?
And finally, is there a Biblical story besides the example of Jesus that speaks to you with regard to the temptation to surrender to things, realities, habits other than what you believe God wants for you life?
We'll talk about this on Sunday evening at 7. I'm looking forward to our conversation - you can begin it now by commenting below ...
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Greetings!
ReplyDeleteThis is one of my most favorite "topics" about being a Christian. Where do we fit in? How can we give our all to God and live in the secular world? Do we draw a line in the sand and dare ourselves not to crossover? Or do we sit on a high and mighty fence looking down at the sin, hoping not to fall off ourselves?
Walking home late one evening, recently, I witnessed an arguement between a couple. At first, I believed it to be a 'lover's spat' until the woman screamed, "Go home to your wife and kids!" There the spat became something all together different. (Trying to avoid eye-contact, as I tried to walk by the couple because I recognized both of these locals),it made me think, as I passed by the store that sells porn, the three liquor stores, and the bars all down Main Street; that this is Main Street America. Our constitution gives us rights and freedoms, but where do we as Christians side?
I think too, to my own dilemma of years past, when believing as a Christian to love my enemy and shalt not kill; then to join the Army, which I felt was my duty and do exactly the opposite. I am haunted by a daily memory of that, even though I listened to the Chaplain's sermon that God allow's us to do this...
I wrestle to give up my life to God and follow Jesus, only to wrestle it back when it doesn't seem to be going 'My Way.' Things only seem to work out best when I finally give in and let God completely take over. I wish I could do this every minute of every day...
I look forward to 'Sunday @ 7'...
Your servant in Christ,
Jim C.
Two books come to mind - "Founding Faith" (Waldman) and "The Suicide of Reason" (Harris). They speak, each in their own way, of the struggle in this country with regard to what "Main Street, USA" would (should?) look like.
ReplyDeleteI'll share a story Sunday evening of an incident in which a man was so committed to prayer that he was unaware of the fatal threat that would end his life.
Thanks for the comments, Jim.