surrender

The Gift Of The Holy Spirit

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If we are willing to the surrender our self-serving desires and seek out God’s will for us and our lives we should begin by turning towards Jesus in prayer and open ourselves up to Him.  When we do that we will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  This is our guide, this is that small voice telling us the right thing to do, especially when the right thing goes against the way of the world.  Listening and then doing what God has intended for us will not be the easy route in many situations.  Over time it can become more natural, it is at the beginning when change will be the most difficult…be persistent, be patient and trust the Lord.  He is right there with you, every step of the way, every single day.  Trust the guidance of the Holy Spirit, it is a gift from God that we may receive this spirit.  Amen.

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“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.”

2 Timothy 1:7

(This photo was taken in October of 2014 on the north shore of the island of Maui, Hawaii)

Jesus Is The Only Way

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One of my favorite things about faith is simplicity.  It seems to be human nature to try to make things more complicated and difficult then necessary.  To fill life with worry, anxiety, frustration and unhealthy fear.  If we want peace, if we want joy, if we want loving and caring relationships then we must come to Jesus.  He already knows all about us whether or not we have acknowledged Him.  He knows you, He loves you and He died to save you.  Seek Him and live.  I pray for the new found and growing relationships people have with Jesus Christ.  Amen.

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“Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.”

John 14:6

(This photo was taken in June of 2013 at the Corn Palace in Mitchell, South Dakota)

Everything, Anything

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Nothing is to big, to complex.  Nothing is to powerful.  Nothing is to difficult to solve.  When we believe in Jesus Christ and trust Him with our everything, everyday we know that God will guide our way through anything we encounter in life.  It may not be the way we would do it on our own, but that is the point, on our own we would get stuck…stopped, without resolution.  No matter what it is you are facing, no matter what battle is knocking you back or down…get back up and surrender the issue to God.  That doesn’t mean you stop doing things or stop living, it means you do your best according to God’s word to live by the fruits of the Spirit and let God take care of the rest.  May we all take steps to surrender our worries and our anxieties to the Lord.  Amen.

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“I can do everything through him who gives me strength.”

Philippians 4:13

(This photo was taken in August of 2016 near Arches National Park in Utah)

Surrender

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Because a life of faith is a journey and not one event or moment in time we must come back to Jesus Christ and His life, death and resurrection.  I am learning that growing and developing or maturing in my spiritual life takes persistence and commitment.  If I reserve my time and faith in God for a few moments at church on the weekend and a few memorized prayers before I eat or go to sleep, I feel like I am just going through the motions and not connecting.  Coming to Christ daily, reading scripture and praying every morning before I sit down with this laptop and ask the Holy Spirit to guide my fingers to share the good news with you…that is how I am learning about new levels of faith and connecting more deeply with God.  We must be willing to give of ourselves, we must be willing to trust in God’s plan and we must be willing to surrender our own plan in order to experience the full glory of God in life.  May the peace and joy of the Lord be with you.

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“Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said:  “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.  For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me  and for the gospel will save it.”

Mark 8:34-35

(This photo was taken in March of 2018 in White Sands National Monument in New Mexico)

God’s Workmanship

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We are His creation…we are created out of love…we are created to do good things.  When we are willing to come to The Cross and surrender, our plans, our ways, our timing for events in life and trust in Him to provide all we need, when we need it, then we will experience true joy.  It sounds so simple and yet it is extremely difficult to execute in everyday life.  We are made with free will, meaning we have a choice to pursue the sinful nature or to pursue a life following Jesus Christ.  God’s plan is so much greater than our own because He is the original Creator of all things.  Turn towards God and ask Him for wisdom about how He wants you to follow His plan for your life.  May the grace and peace of the Lord be with you.

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“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Ephesians 2:10

(This photo was taken in June of 2016 by a lake near Plymouth, Minnesota)

Making Plans…

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Thinking about taking a trip…making a decision about where to live…job transitions…people and relationships…family gatherings and celebrations.  All these things and many more can involve decisions that will have a lasting impact on our lives and the lives of others.  As we grow our relationship with Jesus we must learn to start the planning process by connecting with God first and not wait until things have gone completely off the rails and we are in desperate need of saving.  When we are early in our faith journey we tend want to keep God in a box with glass door that says “In case of an emergency break glass”…that is us trying to be in control and not fully surrendering ourselves to trusting in God’s plan.  Don’t misunderstand me, I still struggle with this in my personal faith journey often.  The change I am trying to make is to be aware of something that your mind spends a great deal of time on and openly offer it up to God’s will.  To spend more time in prayer on the topic and less time stewing about it in my own mind.  May’s God’s goodness and compassion be with you.

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“The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.”

Proverbs 21:5

(This photo was taken in July of 2018 on Lake Superior near the Apostle Islands)

Rest And Sleep

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How many of us have had or are having trouble falling sleep?  Our minds won’t stop wandering or we are constantly moving, rolling from side to side trying to find the comfortable way to fall asleep.  There is usually much more than physical discomfort at work when this is happening.  If we are trying to control everything in our lives we keep thinking about the next thing we need to focus on and if we go with very little sleep too long we will eventually wear out sooner than we should.  Being unable to fall asleep is a spiritual problem more than anything else.  We all need to rest and recharge.  One thing that has worked great is when I hit the pillow and close my eyes I start to pray in my mind, prayer that is memorized, whether it is bible verses or the Our Father.  It keeps my mind focused and I drift off secure in the hands of the Lord.  Another great source of soothing bible verses are in the Psalms.  If you are struggling to fall asleep try something new, put yourself in God’s hands for your rest.  May you find rest and be at peace with God.

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“I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.”

Psalm 4:8

(This photo was taken in September of 2016 at a lake place in central Minnesota)

Trials And Trouble

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Have you ever thought…’why does this have to be so difficult?’ or ‘it seems like every direction I turn things go wrong!’  When dealing with such thoughts I am trying to learn how to step back, to stop doing the repeat cycle that builds up frustration.  As we review situations we should try to asses, ‘am I trying to control too many things?’, ‘am I trying to get things to line up for the outcome I prefer?’ and the most difficult thought, ‘where is God in this situation?’  We may be struggling because we have had an opportunity to learn from the past and as slow learner we need to see the lesson again in a different way to get it through our heads.  Unexpected things are going to happen to us, things will not go as we have planned, the key to growth and development is how you choose to respond to situations and learning along the way.  There is no place in the bible that it says, “have no fear life will be easy.”  We will face difficult times and situations and how we choose to respond will have a lasting impact on us and others.  May God’s peace and joy be with you.

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“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

(This photo was taken in June of 2016 at a lake near Plymouth, Minnesota)

Surrender

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It takes courage and a strong personal relationship with God to surrender our will and focus on God’s will for our life.  The world and the forces of evil want desperately for us to choose the easy path, the convenient way and not bother with God.  The life, death and resurrection of Jesus was not focused on easy.  In fact, it shows us and sets the example of what sacrifice looks like and what putting our trust in God can result in.  A wonderful Pastor friend in my life taught me a lesson around Easter a few years ago…from the greatest of tragedies, pain and suffering comes the greatest joy, jubilation and triumph.

Jesus while praying in Gethsemane shortly before he was arrested, in one moment was pleading with God to ‘take this cup from me’ and then in the next moment he surrenders, ‘Yet not what I will, but what you will’ Mark 14:36  He knows what it means to suffer…He knows more about suffering, pain and tragedies in this world than many of us will ever see.  Trust Him because He did it all for you.

“Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.  Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.”

Psalm 37:5-7

(This photo was taken in June of 2013 near Badlands National Park in South Dakota)

Surrender but Don’t Give Up

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In my opinion in our society and our world today…to surrender, by definition is to yield to the power of another, however, to give up is to quit.  Depending on your context one is a transition and the other carries a negative connotation or a defeated and deflated feeling.  When we listen to the news on TV or read about events online it is easy to feel defeated and deflated by how people in this world choose to treat each other.

Don’t give up…..we live in a fallen world and it is very easy at times to believe that all is lost.  The Good News is…that is not true.  We practice surrender and don’t give up more often than we realize.

For example, you are sitting at your computer doing the things you love (like reading blogs) and something happens…the computer stops responding and then starts popping up boxes and then the “blue screen”.  What happened?  You begin to “troubleshoot” with your vast PC knowledge…you are spending hours trying everything to recover what has been lost…a working computer.  Alas, you have exhausted your abilities and still nothing.  So what do you do?  Do you give up?  Never use that computer again?  No.  You surrender to others who have worked on and repaired computers for living, they often work for companies that create and develop new computer technology.

Now back to our fallen world…there we are living our lives doing the things we love when out of nowhere the world seems to stop responding to us and events keep popping up that trouble us and then we lay down in defeat looking up at the “blue SKY”……wow isn’t this a beautiful day!

Don’t give up on this world.  Surrender to the Creator…he knows what is troubling you.  The best part about faith is it comes with a guide book…the bible.  On this blog I have a Favorite Bible Verses page that I will change from time to time.  The guide book that has been provided us tells us not to give up but trust in God.  Here are two verses I look to:

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”

                                                                                                                     Proverbs 3:5-6

“I am confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.  Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord”

                                                                                                                     Psalm 27:13-14

So take all your problems, all your concerns and lift them up and surrender them to God.  He knows you better than you know him and he loves you unconditionally no matter what.

Find your guide book and open it.