When a Prayer of Surrender Brings Freedom
At the beginning of this year, my church encouraged us to pause, reflect on the past year, and consider the year ahead.
The congregation looked down at a list of printed questions as worship music swelled around us.
“What is one word that would describe how you desire to live for God in this new year?” (emphasis mine)
Rule-follower that I am I wanted one word, but two came to mind instead: “surrendered” and “free.”
A contradiction?
One definition of surrender is “to give oneself up into the power of another” while freedom is a state of not being “subject to the control or domination of another.”
Living surrendered and free at the same time seems impossible, but Jesus didn’t see it that way.
So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, “You will become free?” Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free; you will be free indeed.”
John 8:31-36, ESV, emphasis mine
We are all bound to something, but true freedom comes from submitting ourselves to the authority of the Son.
Surrendering our burdens
Jesus speaks of freedom from sin in the John 8 passage. Other Bible passages promise relief from the burdens of anxiety, fear, and loneliness.
Cast your burden on the LORD,
Psalm 55:22, ESV, emphasis mine
and he will sustain you;
he will never permit
the righteous to be moved.
Detaching myself from all these weights doesn’t come naturally to me. Worry can oddly bring with it a sense of control over the problems I’m facing.
But worry has bound me up more times than it has ever bailed me out. My worry brings about depletion rather than salvation.
This year I want to live for God in the fullness of the freedom he purchased for me.
Handing everything over to Jesus
I picture the unburdening in my mind. Jesus is there. He tells me to carry his yoke because it is “easy” and his burden “is light” (Matthew 11:30 ESV).
In full contradiction to what I’ve learned from this world, I accept that the strength of God is found in my weakness.
Rather than trying to forget my baggage, I surrender it to someone who can handle what I can’t. I try it out. I have nothing to lose, except maybe my false sense of control over everything in those suitcases.
A prayer of surrender
Jesus,
I surrender everything to you.
The people I love, the people I’m trying to love.
My worry about the future, and my memories of the past.
Every item on my to-do list, every event on my calendar.
I surrender it all to you.
You’re the one in control.
You are trustworthy.
I can live unburdened and free before you.
Thank you!
Amen.
Living in freedom
I expect to feel lost, but instead, I’m anchored to the only thing I have left, Jesus. He is what I’ve wanted all along.
So I detach myself from everything I’m carrying that Jesus asks me to lay down. I take these big, battered boxes and put them, one by one, at the feet of Jesus.
I find it so much easier to move about in the world with joy and lightness when I’m not wrestling around with unnecessary baggage.
I’m going to live surrendered and free to God this year.
What word (or if you’re a rebel like me, two words) describe how you want to live for God this year? Scroll down to leave a comment!
If you love this prayer of surrender and are looking for more prayer resources, download this free guide. Based on the account of Jesus calming a storm in Luke 8, this prayer will help you cling to his supernatural peace.
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