I Surrender 🏳️ : Diving Deeper
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Surrender To The Lord And Abide In His Presence.
"I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."
John 15:5
On Sunday, we enjoyed hearing some of Dave's story. One thing Dave shared with us was that he had a rebellious nature as a kid.
He didn't like being told what to do. At times, he would rather try to outrun his mother than obey her. His way seemed better to Dave than his mother's way.
When he was a young teenager, he responded to a Billy Graham Crusade on T.V. and secretly asked Jesus to come into his life and help him.
Dave said he worked in the Christian Secret Service for a number of years, not telling anyone about his decision to believe in Jesus. Dave believed in Jesus as his Savior, but he hadn't surrendered his life to Jesus as Lord yet.
He attended a Christian's men's retreat as a young man. By this time he was a husband, a father and a farmer. During a ministry time at the event, the speaker approached Dave and asked, "Have you surrendered your life to the Lord Jesus?"
Dave found himself in a crossroads moment. Would he listen to the voice of rebellion that said, "I will do it my way!" or would he listen to the Word of God and surrender his life, his wife, his children and even his farm to the Lord Jesus?
That night, Dave chose to surrender his life to the Lordship of Jesus. The decision had been made, now the working out of that decision had begun.
The Lord began to highlight Bible verses to Dave about surrender and about not being able to love both God and material possessions.
The Word of God began to work in Dave's life and he began to learn to live a surrendered life. Dave says he is still learning!
A big test came years later when a whole bin of canola heated and was a loss. In this loss, Dave realized that material possesions still had a hold on him. In his own words he confessed he had grieved his mother and father's death but in some ways he grieved that bin of canola more intensely and for a longer period of time.
Following that experience, Dave realized that he had to surrender again to the Lord. The Lord also revealed that there were some other mindsets that were keeping him from abiding in the righteousness, peace and joy of God's kingdom. These other mindsets were coveting and ... rebellion.
It turned out that those rebellious tendencies had followed Dave from childhood. He followed the Lord's leading and he repented to the Lord. He repented for being rebellious and for thinking his way was better than God's. He repented for coveting.
Thinking our way is better than God's way keeps us from surrendering to Him. Thinking our way is better than God's way keeps us from abiding in Him.
Let us surrender to the Lord and abide in Him.
Blessings Family,
Pastor Merodee
Know Jesus
This week, you can dive deeper into the message through one or all of the following:
Discovery Bible Study
TO BEGIN
Pray and ask Holy Spirit to teach you about God from His word.
Next, read the verse a couple of times.
Now, ask these questions:
What does this tell me about God/Jesus?
What does this tell me about people?
How can I respond to what I just read?
When you’re done asking these questions, it’s a great idea to pray and thank God for teaching you more about who He is and who you are!
Discovery Bible Study (DBS) is a way for anyone, anywhere to read God's word! You can dive deeper into this week's message by doing a DBS one any one or all of these scriptures. DBS is a great tool to use for your own devotions, as a bible study with friends, or as an evangelism tool!
"I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."
John 15:5
Prayer Prompt
Heavenly Father, I surrender my life to the Lordship of Jesus. I give up control in my life and I trust in You to lead me and guide me. I repent of rebellion and coveting. I renounce any partnership I have made with rebellion and coveting. I pray that Your Holy Spirit will fill me. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
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