​Introduction
In the midst of life's complexities and uncertainties, we all yearn for guidance and peace. We seek a path that leads us to fulfillment and purpose. It is in this pursuit that the concept of surrender emerges—a profound act of placing our trust in someone much greater than ourselves, our Creator. As we embark on this journey of surrender, we find solace and direction in trusting in God's unwavering guidance.

Proverbs 3:5-6 encapsulates the essence of surrendering and trusting in God's wisdom: "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." These verses serve as a compass, guiding us toward the blessing found through surrender.

Within the depths of our hearts, we recognize the limitations of our own understanding. We acknowledge that our human perspective is often clouded by biases, doubts, and limited knowledge. It is in this recognition that the beauty of surrender unfolds. We release the need to cling to our own understanding and humbly embrace the vastness of God's wisdom (this is also why “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” Proverbs 9:10).

Surrendering requires trust—a trust that goes beyond what we can comprehend. It is an invitation to relinquish control and place our faith in the One who knows the beginning from the end. As we surrender, we acknowledge that God's ways surpass our own, and His plans for us are far greater than what we can fathom.

In a world that encourages self-reliance and the pursuit of personal understanding, surrendering to God's guidance may seem counterintuitive. Yet, it is in this act of surrender that we discover true freedom. We find a peace that surpasses understanding, knowing that we are not alone in navigating the intricacies of life. Surrendering is an act of profound trust—a trust that allows us to experience the blessings that await us when we release our grip and let God lead.

We will further explore the significance of surrendering and trusting in God's guidance. We will delve into the transformative power of letting go of our own understanding and embracing the Divine wisdom that surpasses our limited perspective. Together, let us embark on a journey of surrender, as we discover the abundant blessings that come when we entrust our lives to the faithful hands of our Heavenly Father.
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Trusting in the Lord with all thine heart

Trusting in the Lord with all thine heart lies at the very foundation of surrendering to God's guidance. It is an invitation to place our complete confidence in His unwavering wisdom and goodness, knowing that His ways surpass our limited understanding.

To trust in the Lord means to recognize the limitations of our own understanding and acknowledge that He holds the ultimate wisdom. It requires us to release our grasp on control and humbly submit to His divine guidance. Trusting in God is an act of surrender, a surrender of our own limited perspectives and a recognition that His ways are higher and His thoughts are wiser than ours.

In a world that often urges self-reliance and the pursuit of personal understanding, trusting in the Lord with all our heart goes against the grain. It challenges us to let go of the illusion of control and instead lean on the steadfastness of God's character. It is a conscious decision to rely on His unfailing love, faithfulness, and sovereignty.

Placing our complete confidence in God's wisdom and goodness requires us to set aside our own limited understanding. Our human understanding is subject to biases, incomplete knowledge, and the limitations of our finite minds. But when we trust in the Lord with all our heart, we surrender our own understanding and choose to believe that His understanding is perfect and complete.

Trusting in the Lord with all our heart is an act of faith, a surrendering of our doubts and fears. It means entrusting our lives, our plans, and our future into His capable hands. It involves seeking His guidance, following His Word, aligning our will with His, and relying on His promises.

In this act of surrender, we find true freedom and peace. We release the burden of trying to figure everything out on our own and instead embrace the assurance that God is in control. When we trust in the Lord with all our heart, we can rest in the knowledge that He is faithful, loving, and always working for our ultimate good.

As we embark on the journey of surrender, let us remember the significance of trusting in the Lord with all our heart. Let us release our grip on control, humbly acknowledge our limited understanding, and place our complete confidence in His unwavering wisdom and goodness. In trusting Him, we find guidance, security, and the blessings that come from surrendering our lives into His loving care.

Lean not unto thine own understanding

The admonition to "lean not unto thine own understanding" speaks directly to the flaws inherent in relying solely on human judgment. It challenges us to examine the limitations and biases that cloud our thinking and urges us to embrace a different source of wisdom and guidance.

When we rely solely on our own understanding, we are susceptible to a host of pitfalls. Our judgments can be colored by personal biases, influenced by societal pressures, and clouded by our own desires and fears. We are prone to making decisions based on incomplete information, emotional impulses, and flawed perspectives. Our understanding is finite and fallible, subject to the ever-changing nature of our human experiences.

Relinquishing intellectual pride and acknowledging our dependence on God's guidance requires humility and a recognition of our own limitations. It calls us to set aside our prideful belief that we have all the answers and invites us to seek wisdom beyond our own understanding. By surrendering control, we open ourselves up to the boundless wisdom of the Creator, who knows all things and sees the intricate interplay of circumstances in our lives.

Embracing God's wisdom brings numerous benefits. Firstly, it provides us with a broader perspective that transcends our limited understanding. God's wisdom is not bound by time, space, or human limitations. It encompasses the eternal and the infinite. By embracing His wisdom, we gain access to insights that surpass what our human minds can comprehend.

Secondly, surrendering control to embrace God's wisdom frees us from the burdens of self-reliance and the pressures of making all decisions on our own. It relieves us of the weight of constantly figuring things out and grants us the peace that comes from knowing we are not alone in navigating life's complexities. When we surrender to God's wisdom, we can find solace in the fact that He is guiding our steps and working all things together for our good.

Moreover, embracing God's wisdom enables us to align our lives with His divine purposes. It allows us to walk in accordance with His will, which is ultimately for our benefit and the benefit of others. Surrendering control and embracing God's wisdom means letting go of our own agendas and submitting to His higher purposes. In doing so, we can experience a deeper sense of fulfillment, purpose, and alignment with His perfect plan.

In conclusion, leaning not unto thine own understanding requires us to recognize the flaws in relying solely on human judgment. It calls us to relinquish intellectual pride and humbly acknowledge our dependence on God's guidance. By surrendering control and embracing God's wisdom, we open ourselves up to a broader perspective, find freedom from self-reliance, and align ourselves with His divine purposes. Let us embrace the benefits that come from surrendering control to embrace God's wisdom and experience the transformative power it brings to our lives.
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Acknowledge Him in all thy ways

To "acknowledge Him in all thy ways" is a call to recognize the presence and influence of God in every aspect of our lives. It is an invitation to invite Him into our decision-making, relationships, and daily activities, and to seek His guidance and wisdom in all that we do.

When we acknowledge God in every aspect of life, we acknowledge His sovereignty and His role as the ultimate authority. It means recognizing that we are not the masters of our own destiny, but rather, we are called to align our will with His divine purposes. Acknowledging Him in all our ways is an act of surrender, acknowledging that His ways are higher and better than our own.

In decision-making, acknowledging God involves seeking His guidance and wisdom. It means inviting Him into the process, humbly seeking His will and asking for His direction. When faced with choices, big or small, we can lay them before Him in prayer, seeking His discernment and trusting that He will guide us along the right path. By acknowledging God in our decision-making, we open ourselves up to His wisdom and allow Him to work through us.

In relationships, acknowledging God means inviting Him into the dynamics and interactions we have with others. It means seeking His guidance in how we treat others, how we communicate, and how we navigate conflicts. When we acknowledge God in our relationships, we open ourselves up to His love and grace, enabling us to love others unconditionally and to extend forgiveness and understanding. By surrendering to His authority in our relationships, we can experience transformative healing and restoration.

Furthermore, acknowledging God in our daily activities means recognizing His presence in the ordinary moments of life. It means involving Him in our work, our hobbies, our routines, and our leisure. By inviting Him into these aspects, we can experience a deeper sense of purpose and fulfillment. Whether we are serving others, pursuing our passions, or simply going about our daily tasks, acknowledging God reminds us that our lives are interconnected with His Divine plan.

Surrendering to God's authority through acknowledging Him in all our ways has a transformative effect on our lives. It frees us from the burdens of self-reliance and the limitations of our own understanding. By surrendering, we open ourselves up to His guidance, His wisdom, and His transformative power. Through surrender, we can experience a profound sense of peace, purpose, and alignment with His will.

In conclusion, acknowledging Him in all our ways involves recognizing God's presence in every aspect of life. It means seeking His guidance in decision-making, inviting Him into our relationships, and involving Him in our daily activities. Through surrendering to God's authority, we can experience the transformative power of His wisdom and grace. Let us acknowledge Him in all our ways and experience the blessings that come from surrendering to His Divine guidance.

He shall direct thy paths

"He shall direct thy paths" encapsulates the promise of divine guidance offered in Proverbs 3:5-6. It assures us that when we surrender to God and trust in His wisdom, He will lead us on the right path. This promise speaks to the intimate involvement of God in our lives, guiding our steps and directing our journeys.

Throughout history and even in our present time, there are countless stories and examples of individuals who have experienced God's guidance through surrender. These stories testify to the transformative power of surrendering to God's direction and trusting in His leading.

Consider Joseph from the Old Testament. Despite facing trials and setbacks, Joseph remained faithful and surrendered to God's plan for his life. Through his surrender, God directed Joseph's path and ultimately used him to save his family and a nation from famine.

Another example from the New Testament is the Apostle Paul. After encountering Christ on the road to Damascus, Paul surrendered his life completely to God's service. Through his surrender, Paul was directed to become one of the greatest Evangelists of all time, spreading the message of Jesus throughout the known world, establishing numerous Churches, and penning several books of the New Testament.

Other Biblical examples include:

Abraham: Abraham demonstrated surrender when he obeyed God's command to leave his homeland and journey to a new land. As a result, he became the father of many nations and received God's promises and blessings.

Moses: Moses surrendered his own plans and desires to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, despite his initial hesitations and doubts. Through his surrender, he witnessed God's power through the plagues, the parting of the Red Sea, and received the Ten Commandments.

Mary (mother of Jesus): Mary's surrender to God's will is evident in her response to the angel Gabriel when she said, "Let it be to me according to your word" (Luke 1:38). Her surrender allowed her to become the mother of Jesus, the Savior of the world.

Mary Magdalene: Mary Magdalene surrendered her past life and sins to follow Jesus. She became one of His most devoted followers and was the first person to witness the resurrected Christ, receiving the blessing of being the bearer of the good news of His resurrection.

In more contemporary times, there are individuals who have experienced God's guidance through surrender. It could be a person who felt called to change their career path and, by surrendering to God's leading, found fulfillment and success in a new vocation that aligned with their passions and gifts. Or it could be a couple who surrendered their plans for starting a family and instead embraced adoption, experiencing the blessings of building a loving home for a child in need. Another example is someone who is successful in a vocation who is suddenly called to become a missionary and go overseas to the other side of the world to share the Gospel in another language that he doesn’t yet know. By surrendering to this call, he goes from what is known (his current successes) to what is unknown (new culture, new language, away from friends and family, etc).

The blessings and fulfillment that come from surrendering to God's direction are immeasurable. When we surrender our own desires, plans, and understanding to God, we open ourselves up to His perfect will for our lives. In surrender, we find peace, knowing that we are following His guidance and walking in His purposes.

Surrendering to God's direction brings clarity and wisdom to our decision-making processes. It liberates us from the burden of trying to figure everything out on our own and allows us to trust in His divine leading. It aligns our lives with His greater plan and enables us to experience the fullness of His blessings.

Moreover, surrendering to God's direction cultivates a deep sense of fulfillment and purpose. It leads us to the places where we can use our gifts and talents most effectively, and it allows us to make a positive impact on the world around us. When we surrender to God's guidance, our lives become a testimony to His grace, love, and faithfulness.

In conclusion, the promise that God will direct your paths assures us of God's divine guidance when we surrender to Him. Through stories and examples of individuals who have experienced God's guidance through surrender, we are reminded of the transformative power of surrendering to God's direction. The blessings and fulfillment that come from surrendering to His leading are profound, bringing peace, clarity, and a deep sense of purpose. May we embrace the blessings that come from surrendering to God's direction and trust that He will faithfully guide our paths.

Conclusion

In conclusion, surrendering to God's guidance and letting go of our own understanding is a transformative journey that brings profound blessings. As we trust in God with all our hearts, acknowledging His sovereignty and wisdom, we release the limitations of our human understanding. We surrender our intellectual pride and open ourselves up to the vastness of God's wisdom.

Through surrender, we invite God into every aspect of our lives, seeking His guidance in decision-making, relationships, and daily activities. We recognize His presence in the ordinary and extraordinary moments, aligning our will with His divine purposes. Surrendering control to God's authority leads to a life of fulfillment, purpose, and alignment with His perfect plan.

Throughout history and in our own experiences, we see the evidence of God's guidance through surrender. Stories of individuals who yielded their lives to God's leading demonstrate the transformative power of surrender. Their journeys are marked by divine direction, unforeseen opportunities, and blessings that surpass human understanding.

As we conclude, I encourage you to let go of your own understanding and embrace the blessings of surrender. Trust in God's guidance, for He knows the intricacies of your path. Surrendering control to Him does not diminish you; rather, it opens doors to the extraordinary. It is an invitation to experience the transformative power of His wisdom, love, and grace.

May you be inspired to surrender your desires, plans, and understanding to God's loving hands. Trust in His faithfulness and embrace the blessings that come from surrendering to His direction. As you journey on the path of surrender, may you discover the joy, peace, and fulfillment that can only be found in letting go and letting God.

​Sometimes, we’re given a choice. We can help someone or not help someone. We see someone get injured, and we can help or not help. For us now, the outcome doesn’t look to be different. We think someone else can help. Or we think the situation is helpless altogether.

Esther was in the same predicament. Haman was planning to get rid of the Jews. Esther was warned by Mordecai and told her husband, the King, the plan and saved the Jews just in time.

Mordecai told Esther, “Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14b) to encourage her that her role as Queen was God-ordained.

While we don’t necessarily run across situations like this every day (or perhaps in our own lifetime), situations we face may be happening because they’re God-ordained.

​So, Esther was given the choice, and the decisions she had to make led to two completely different outcomes. The same for us, sometimes. We’re between two worlds - which path will you choose when the time comes?

Have you ever had a time in your life when everything was not going well?

Most of us have. Bad thing happens after bad thing, or things at work keep going wrong. Sometimes you feel like giving up.

But…

Don’t!

“Why?” you may ask.

Habakkuk 3:17-18 gives a perfect example, and of course Job gives a bigger example. Let’s look, however, at the Habakkuk passage:

“Though the fig tree may not blossom, Nor fruit be on the vines; Though the labor of the olive may fail, And the fields yield no food; Though the flock may be cut off from the fold, And there be no herd in the stalls—Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.”

The Jewish society was very agrarian. Many farmers relied on external factors for their job to be done as needed. They needed to produce food. They sometimes needed to take care of the sheep. They needed rain to produce crops, but if none of that went well, they still had God.
In today’s society, what we do for a living sometimes becomes our identity. However, when you make that your identity, and things go wrong, you think it’s you that’s going wrong.

However, as Christians, our identity’s in Christ. Our rejoicing should be in God, not in our work. Our salvation comes from God, not from ourselves.

​Therefore, even if everything goes wrong in our work or in our personal life, that’s not our identity. It’s Christ who gives us our meaning. Your identity is in Christ, and Christ didn’t die for trash.

I was with one of my children at the hospital Sunday. When we were there, there was a boy crying for his father.

This made me realize a Spiritual point: While his father doesn't know what he wants but comforts him, our Heavenly Father knows what we want and comforts us.

Let us hold onto the truth of I Peter 5:7, allowing it to guide our hearts and minds: "casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you." With each burden we surrender, we open ourselves to experiencing our Heavenly Father’s love for us.

2 Corinthians 4:15-18: “For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God. Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.  For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

Are things around us going wrong? Do we get weaker and older?

Yes, to all above. How can we be encouraged, then?

Those weaknesses and frailties are only temporary. There’s a whole new side we can’t physically see. Through the trials and temptations that we go through and pass here on earth, we’re being built up Spiritually for the life ahead that we will have in Heaven, if we’re truly God’s child.

What we see now will be wiped away, but the eternal Kingdom is forever.

Indeed, the passage in 2 Corinthians 4:15-18 offers encouragement and perspective in the midst of challenges and the passing nature of our physical existence. Let's explore these ideas:
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1. Recognizing the purpose of trials - According to the passage, trials are for our sakes. This is so that, when we’re brought out of the trials, we give thanksgiving to God. And, for that reason, we shouldn’t lose hope.
2. Renewal from within - The renewal, which doesn’t come from us, comes from God. God is renewing us daily.
3. The eternal weight of glory - In comparison to our sufferings here on earth, God’s glory will be with us forever.
4. Shifting our focus - It’s easy to look on the physical side of life and lose focus of the Kingdom.
5. Anticipation of the eternal Kingdom - As Christians, while on earth, we are to wait for Jesus to return. “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself” (Philippians 3:20-21).

In conclusion, the passage in 2 Corinthians 4:15-18 reminds us that even when things around us may be going wrong and we experience the effects of aging and weakness, we can find encouragement in the eternal perspective provided by our faith. These temporary challenges serve a purpose in our spiritual growth and transformation. We are being built up for the future life we will have in the eternal Kingdom of God.