Grace for the Writer’s Journey: Surrender

Dear Writer, I hope you had a beautiful week and explored how to build a habitation for God in your life and writing! This week, we’ll look at an invaluable character trait in partnering with God’s grace for you as a writer. That trait is surrender.

You see, God often leads us as writers into new arenas and unfamiliar places. Stepping into His grace for those new paths requires a willingness to release what’s familiar. And here’s the lovely thing. God’s call to surrender is actually an invitation to know Him more deeply.

But before we jump in, let’s look at some others whose surrender opened amazing doors…

Surrender in History

Mother Teresa is a beautiful example of a surrendered life. When God called her from the classroom to serve the poorest in Calcutta, Mother Teresa stepped into that foreign environment with her whole heart. Though she didn’t know what that ministry would look like or how God would provide, she boldly stepped into God’s call. As she did, God guided her steps, sending her people to help and the provision she needed for this new work.

As a result, her organization, Missionaries of Charity, still brings hope and salvation to countless of those left destitute today.

Surrender in the Bible

Mary is another powerful example of surrender. When Mary received the announcement from Gabriel that she was chosen to bear God’s son, she replied, “May it be unto me as you have said.” Mary gave God her unequivocal yes, though that bold step opened the door to misunderstanding and rejection from friends and neighbors. Mary’s bold surrender opened the door for God to enter the world in a way that changed it forever.

Surrender in Life

I learned surrender when the ministry I worked for hired a manager who didn’t have the ministry’s core interests at heart. When I objected to what I saw as mission drift, things started to blow up in my face. And God gave me a clear choice. I could trust Him to take care of things while walking in Godly submission to the new authority. Or, I could be fired.

Though it was a difficult step, I chose to submit and apologized for my actions to the manager. To my surprise, I quickly became one of his favorite employees. Later, when God moved the manager out of the organization in His own timing, my relationship with the ministry remained intact, opening future doors to teach in Uganda.

Surrender in Your Life

You see, writer, sometimes surrender is simply a willingness to take the next right step. Even when we don’t know how things will work out or don’t feel like we have all the pieces. When we willingly walk into that space with God, it enables Him to unleash His grace through your life in astounding ways. Let me show you…

• • 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. – Proverbs 3:5-6
  • And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” – Luke 1:45
  • By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. – Hebrews 11:8-10
  • Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. – Hebrew 11:1-2
  • Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established. – Proverbs 16:3

You see, writer, surrender is what opens our hearts and minds to do new things in new ways in new seasons. Surrender allows God to lead us into the great adventure He’s planned. Surrender allows His glory to break into our lives and writing. And as we surrender ourselves to Him, He unleashes His glory through us into the lives of others, too.

 Where to Start with Surrender

So are you ready to take another look at surrender as His writer? Here are some things to keep in mind…

1. 1. Know His Voice. As we lean into this surrendered life, we must learn to hear God’s voice for ourselves. We can cultivate this habit by spending time in His Word to learn His will, ways, and heart; by spending time in prayer and journaling; and by spending time in corporate worship. The more we engage in these disciplines, the more we attune our ears to recognize the many ways He uniquely speaks to us.
   2. Step Out in Faith. Wherever you know the Lord has spoken, begin taking small steps forward. Many of us have areas of life where we know God has asked something of us. We simply haven’t followed through. Sometimes, if we’ve not heard much from God, going back and obeying His last instruction opens the way for the next thing He wants to do.
   3. Remove Distractions. Sometimes we fail to hear God’s voice and to obey it simply because we’ve filled our time with too many other things. Social media, entertainment, news, hobbies, and the worries of family, work, and life all vie for our attention. One powerful step toward surrender can be to take a day, week, or month to fast from anything you know has been consuming more of your thought and energy than it deserves. Fasting helps clear your mind and clarify your priorities to move forward with purpose.
   4. Prioritize Daily Quiet Time. Another key to a surrendered life is developing a daily quiet time. You see, it’s hard to surrender to someone we don’t trust. And it’s hard to trust someone we’re not in regular relationship with. When we spend time with the Lord daily, it sets Him foremost in our mind. It also allows us to see how He’s at work around us, pouring out His love. It also gives us confidence that He is indeed busying Himself about our steps. As a result, our courage to move with bold obedience grows. And here’s the real deal…

One of the very best ways to ensure our readers encounter God through our words is by allowing Him to encounter us as we write. And by allowing Him to be our guide on the journey.

After all, Mother Teresa’s obedience to God allowed her to become His hands and feet to those who’d never known hope. Mary’s acceptance of God’s plan enabled God to open Himself to all of humanity as never before. My obedience to God’s direction to hold my tongue, allowed me to unlock the voices of Ugandan brothers and sisters who know share their stories with the world.

So if you’ve been waiting to really get started on your writing journey, writer, I encourage you to take your first step toward a surrendered life. That step my nave nothing to do with writing at all. But it will have everything to do with God’s glory being unleashed through you.

#glory #surrender #EveryWriterWriting