[THE] Huddle: Surrender

Ready: 

“Taste and see that the LORD is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!” -- Psalm 34:8 NLT

Set:

When we notice there is more to life than we can see, we want to be a part of it! I worked as a lifeguard at a swimming pool with two diving boards throughout high school and college--a regular diving board and a diving board called the “high dive.” 

The lifeguards taught swimming lessons to the younger children, and the reward at the end of the session would be to jump off the regular diving board. I would wait in the water with my arms held high above my head, waiting for each child to jump! Some children were scared for their lives; they would walk up the ladder and walk right back down the ladder to their parents. They valued their comfort over their courage. The lifeguards never forced the children to jump. Other children would trust the lifeguards, move through their fears, and sweetly surrender into the lifeguards’ arms waiting for them! Their heads would pop up out of the water, and they would yell, “Again! Again!” 

At some point in your life, you will begin to notice the fingerprints of God on your life. You begin to understand He has always been present, and He keeps His promises. God never forces us into a relationship with Him. He wants us to courageously choose to take a leap of faith, surrender into His loving arms and begin a relationship with Him.  

As we walk with Him, we will face adversity, fear, and even doubt. That is when we must hold onto our courage over our comfort, surrendering into The Father’s arms.

This weekend I made some delicious, gooey fudge brownies. I cannot force you to eat one, but if you trust me, I promise when you do eat it, your experience will be delightful as you taste and see! 

God extends the invitation to surrender to Him. He promises the experience to be delightful! 

Learning to pray is learning to trust the wisdom, the power, and the love of our Heavenly Father, always so far beyond our dreams. He knows our needs and knows ways to meet them that have never entered our heads. Things we feel sure we need for happiness may often lead to our ruin. Things we think will ruin us if we believe what the Father tells us and surrender ourselves into His strong arms, bring us deliverance and joy!  -- Elizabeth Elliot 

When you turn to God and taste His goodness, the experience goes above and beyond jumping off the regular diving board-you have just moved to the “high dive,” and the eternal God is your refuge, and His everlasting arms are under you (Deuteronomy 33:27).

Go:  

• Have you taken the courageous leap of faith out of your comfort zone to sweetly surrender into the loving arms of your Heavenly Father?  
• How do you surrender to Him daily? 

Workout: 

Galatians 2:20; Matthew 16:24-25; Psalm 119:103

Overtime: 

“Heavenly Father, I praise You for loving me from the beginning and for giving me the confidence to take a leap of faith right into Your outstretched loving arms. As You have become the Savior of my life, I pray I may surrender to You daily as my Lord. In the precious Name of Jesus, I pray, Amen.”

Mindy Lee Hopman