JUNE 25

OUR PERSONAL PROMISES

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Psalm 9:10

“And those who know Your name will put their trust in You; For You, Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You.”

Proverbs 3:5-6

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.”

Psalm 5:11

“But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; Let those also who love Your name Be joyful in You.”

2 Corinthians 1:9

“Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead,”

Job 2:10

…… “ Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?….”

Job 1:21

“…..the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”

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We are reading a book by Corrie ten Boom, with daily recordings she made to broadcast over Trans World Radio.  Her Dutch family  sheltered Jews during the Nazi invasion of Holland.  As a result, she, her sister Betsy and their father were taken to concentration camps in Germany. The Lord did many miracles to allow both Corrie and Betsy to bring the Gospel to the other women in their camp.   Their father was murdered in an extermination camp and Betsy was sick, dying just two weeks before Corrie and the rest were freed.  After her freedom, Corrie traveled the world, telling everyone even in remote areas, about salvation through Christ, besides radio and writing many books.  This one is entitled, “Not I, but Christ.”

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ARE YOU AFRAID OF FULL SURRENDER?

The beginning is what we call conversation, turning toward the Lord Jesus.  We have lived so far with our backs toward God.  Now we turn 180 degrees toward Him.  This is the first glorious step.  Then Jesus makes us a child of God.

After that, however, the child must grow, and this means we have to put our weak hands, time and again, into the strong hand of Jesus who wants to go with us and guide us.   Your circumstances, your family, your work, your worries, your problems, your suffering, too – if there is suffering—you can give to Him.

There was a time when I was afraid to surrender to Him.  “I do not dare,” I said, “You never know what consequences it may have.  I don’t know how to accomplish it, and I lack the courage.”

How dreadful to think such things of the Lord, to be afraid of consequences.  Then I learned something I want to tell you who are afraid and do not know how to accomplish it: 

You do not need to do it in your own strength or by a strong will.  God wants to work in you – both to will and to perform.

In earnest prayer we must find the answer.  God who is powerful and full of love wants to work in us Himself, in order to take away all that is wrong, that we may surrender to Him all that is wrong in our thoughts and deeds.

God Himself made Abraham an instrument of his glory.

Then you begin to pray:  “God, please make me willing to be made willing.”  I heard this prayer for the first time in New Zealand.  A theology student had broken his neck while swimming.  He was left paralyzed from neck to toes.  He was very intelligent and helped me correct the book I had written in English.  One evening we spoke about the fact that he could surrender even the terrible experience he had had.  I told him that my sister Betsie, in the concentration camp, had said, “We must not think and speak about our lives in days past, or about what we shall experience when we are free again.  We must completely surrender our being prisoners to the Lord.  Then we shall be able to accept it.”

In the following night I heard the young man pray:  “Lord, please make me willing to be made willing to surrender all, my life, also my paralysis.”  The next morning his face was radiant with peace and joy.

If there is something you cannot and dare not surrender, then pray this prayer:

“Lord, will you make me willing to be made willing to surrender completely?”

If you pray this, your loving Savior is going to do it.

Jesus’ life was one of complete surrender.  He bought us with a high price.  He lives in your heart through His Holy Spirit if you are born again.  You limit Him with your anxiety and unwillingness.  He is longing to help you.  Trust Him by completely surrendering to Him.

The Germans have a hymn which says, “Instead of thinking of myself, I will throw myself into the ocean of love.”  This is surrender.  There is nothing more glorious – no longer I, but He.

As soon as we throw ourselves into the arms of Jesus in full surrender, we shall be surrounded and filled with the ocean of God’s love.

It is the Lord Himself who is willing to help us to surrender fully.  The Holy Spirit tells us we can go to Him about it.  But even when we do so, often doubts enter our hearts:  

“Was it real?”  ~ “Was it complete?”  There is a wonderful verse of Scripture that has greatly helped me.  The Lord Jesus said to a father who came to Him with his demon-possessed son:  “All thing are possible to him that believes.”   Then this man called out:  “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief.”  (Mark 9:23-24)

We might say this was faith that had little value, but it did triumph over the devil, and the demon was cast out.

If you and I now come and say:  “Lord, I dedicate myself in full surrender to You,”  this may be said with a trembling heart; we may feel no strength, no certainty at all, but we will succeed.  Do not be afraid.  Come just as you are, and the power of the Holy Spirit will begin to work in you.

Just now I am reminded of the Lord Jesus in Gethsemane.  The Holy Spirit strengthened Him to surrender completely, but what distress, what fear came over Him!! 

If you are weak and fearful, just trust in and surrender to the work of God’s Spirit in you.  Trust that God accepts you.

Look up to Him.  Sometimes we are much occupied with ourselves, but we must be occupied with God.  Don’t be afraid to say:

 “Lord, I do not quite understand, but I accept Your conditions that I must and can surrender completely so that You will bless me and make me a blessing.” 

If you say this in your heart – perhaps with fear and trembling —  then you can be assured that God will take notice of it.  He listens, He writes it into his Book, and from that moment, He takes complete possession of you.  Perhaps you do not feel it, or realize it, but now you belong completely to Him.

It is such joy that we can talk about all things with Him.  Just tell Him everything – you have doubts, you do not understand, or whatever it may be.  You belong to Him.  Now you must not only talk to Him, but also listen to his voice.

There is an old story about a lost brooch that greatly helped me.  A valuable brooch was lost in a theater.  The owner noticed this loss only when she came home.  Early the next morning she called the hall porter of the theater and asked him whether he had found a brooch.

“No,” the man said, “but where did you sit?  I will go and look.  Perhaps it is under your seat.”

“I was in the second seat on the fifth row.”

The man went and looked and found the brooch.  He returned to the telephone and said:  “Yes, I am so glad.  I found your brooch!  Hello?  Hello?”  There was no answer.  The lady had put down the receiver and never knew that her brooch had been found. The Holy Spirit teaches us to expect much of the Lord.

Listen to the Lord.  If you do not hear His voice at once, then wait patiently.  He is a Good Shepherd, and a good shepherd talks to his sheep.  Waiting on the Lord is a blessing in itself.  Do not immediately put down the receiver.  He loves you, and He longs to say many things to you!

(As a wise preacher of old has said about waiting for our answer:  “What we call the process, God calls the goal.”  The process of waiting is the blessing that God is working in us.)

Lord Jesus, thank you that we no longer need to try and try, because You want to work in us by Your Holy Spirit.  Thank you for loving us so much.  Please, forgive us that often we have little time and patience to listen to You.  Thank you that you are willing to do everything we cannot do.  Please show us how we can completely surrender and why we must do so.  Thank You for accepting us when we surrender.  Hallelujah!  Amen.

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