Matthew 11:28
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Surrendering for Victory
For some reason I find it hard to surrender because I see that as defeat. But the way that the Bible teaches it, victory is only possible by surrendering–surrendering to God, that is. That means we must lay aside every weight we try to carry by ourselves so that we can run the race that’s ahead of us with endurance (Heb. 12:1b). No runner runs a race with weights on, but sometimes our weights can be mental ones; that is, we can carry baggage in our minds that slow us down and encumber our walk with Christ. Jesus tells us He wants to take that weight so we can find rest for our souls (Matt. 11:29) because Jesus’ yoke allows us to lighten our burden (Matt. 11:30). That’s so easy to say but so very hard to do.
The Obstacles of Our Faith
Are the obstacles of our faith those things we need every day like food, water, and shelter? Jesus tells us to not worry about these types of things (Matt. 6:25). God assures that even the birds of the air are taken care of and they don’t have anyplace to store up provisions for themselves (Matt. 6:26). Is worrying about what will happen tomorrow our obstacle? Jesus tells us not to worry about what comes tomorrow because today’s enough in itself (Matt. 6:34). If we are anxious about things, then these can become obstacles to our faith, and we must surrender them all to God. If you’re anxious about anything, just surrender it to Jesus, make your requests to God, and drop the worry (Phil. 4:6).
Possessions Can Own Us
I know a man who owns a lot of possessions, but I wonder if his possessions actually own him. Do you know what I mean? Jesus once shocked the rich rulers in Judea by telling them that they should sell all of their possessions and help the needy, thereby storing up treasures in heaven, where they’ll be safe from corruption or thievery (Luke 12:33). Jesus was saying that what we treasure shows where our heart really is (Luke 12:34). God desires to give us so much more than we can imagine, like the kingdom and all that goes with that (Luke 12:32). Besides, if we are seeking the King of the kingdom above everything else, God will assure that we’ll have all of our needs met, anyway (Matt. 6:33). So the question is what obstacles do we you to surrender to Jesus today? Is it worry about money, bills, family, your job? Surrender it all and you’ll discover the greatest riches of all, which are the unsearchable riches of Jesus Christ (Eph. 3:8).
A Closing Prayer
Father, I am so sorry that I let the obstacles of worry and anxiety take the place of surrendering to You and trusting in You above all the issues in my life. I fall so far short in these things. Help me to thoroughly trust You and not things and problems so that I can surrender everything that interferes with a complete and total surrender to You, and in Jesus’ name I pray.
Amen
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