POINT TO PONDER:The heart of worship is surrender.
REFLECT: How did today's reading impact you?
What an interesting topic for us as America stands on the brink of war with Saddam Hussein. Surrender. The word is almost always used in a negative context. We would rather talk about winning, succeeding, overcoming, and conquering than yielding, submitting, obeying, and surrending. But... surrendering to God is at the heart of worship. It is the natural response to God's amazing love. We give ourselves to Him, not out of fear or duty, but love in response to His love. 
       "So then, my friends, because of God's great mercy to us... offer yourselves 
   as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to His service and pleasing to Him.
   This is the true worship that you should offer" (Romans 12:1 - The Message)
There are three barriers that block our total surrender to God: fear, pride and confusion.
Fear- Can I trust God? The cure to fear is love and God proved His love for you and I -- once and for all. 
       "God proves His love for us in that while we were still sinners, 
   Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8 - New Revised Standard Version)
A second barrier is pride - Admitting my limitations and trying to control my life. God is God, and I am not! I accept my humanity intellectually, but not emotionally, When faced with my own limitations, I react with irritation, anger and resentment. I want to be taller, smarter, stronger, (Fill in the blanks...) Then when I compare myself to others and see that God gave them characteristics I dont have, I respond with envy, jealosy, and self-pity.
A final barrier to surrender is Confusion -misunderstanding what surrender really means. It is not passive resignation fatalism, or an excuse for laziness. It is not repressing my personality. It is trust and obedience... I know I've surrendered to God when I rely on God to work things out instead of trying to manipulate people or circumstances, forcing my agenda. Instead of trying harder, I trust more...(Can anyone else say...OUCH?)
PRAYER:
"Gracious Father, Thank You for loving me. I confess that I don't always understand it, and in my pride, I want to control my life. Sometimes the truth is that I don't trust You. Today, I desire to hold nothing back from You. Amen"
FOR MY CONSIDERATION:
   What does it mean to surrender my life to God? Which barrier (fear, pride, confusion) prevents me from surrender? What area(s) of my life am I holding back from Him?
This week's Memory verse: 
 	"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and 
	with all your strength."                         Mark 12:30 (NIV)
CBF Home How can we help you in this journey? Please let us know
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