"How God Meets Your Deepest Needs" in American Sign LanguageSample

Surrender to God’s Loving Control
By Rick Warren

“Since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us.” (Romans 5:1 NLT)

If you want to have deep, personal, satisfying peace of mind in heart and soul, you’ve got to surrender control of your life totally to God. How do you know if you’ve done that?

Evidence of a surrendered life is always obedience. When God says, “Do it!” I do it. I don’t care if I don’t understand it, if anybody else is doing it, if it’s possible or not, if it’s hard or easy. I just do it.

When you listen to God’s Word and follow his direction, the result is always the same: peace.

Today, you may be in an uncontrollable circumstance. You may be married to an unchangeable person. You may be experiencing an unexplainable problem. The good news is you can have the peace of God in your life. But first, you have to make peace with God. You can’t have the peace of God until you first make peace with God. How do you do that? By surrendering your entire life in faith to Jesus Christ. “Since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us” (Romans 5:1 NLT).

Aren’t you tired of being at war with God? Don’t you realize that is your life's single greatest source of stress? What is the result of being in control of your life? Worry, guilt, bitterness, resentment, anxiety, fear, fatigue, depression, and despair. What is the result of putting Jesus Christ first in your life and fully surrendering to whatever he wants? Peace, power, strength, wisdom, purpose, meaning, eternal life, significance, and joy.

Would you pray this prayer in your heart? “Dear Father, you know how I have resented the problems in my life and how I have resisted the things that have caused me pain that I can’t change. You know I’ve asked you many times for an explanation that never came. Today, I want to stop fighting you over things I don’t understand. Forgive me. I want to begin the path of personal peace. So I am asking you for help. Help me to change what I can, and help me accept the things that cannot be changed. Help me, Jesus, to trust in your loving care when things don’t make sense. Help me to trust that you are a good God and that you have my best interest at heart. Today, I surrender all my life unconditionally to your loving care and control. Please give me your strength and wisdom and peace and purpose. I want to make peace with God by faith so that I can have the peace of God through you, Jesus Christ. Amen.”