2011 - A year of giving up - "On the High Road of Surrender" - Day 8 - The Disciplines of Freedom - Part 2

Obedience releases God's power in your life<http://profile.purposedriven.com/dailyhope/post.html?contentid=5575>.
We see, then, that they were not able to enter the land, because they did not believe. Hebrews 3:19 (TEV)

The saddest verse to me in the entire Bible is today's verse. It says the people of God were not able to enter the Promised Land because of their unbelief.
Think about this: For 400 years God planned the liberation of the Israelites from Egypt. To convince Pharaoh to let them go, God sent the various plagues to Egypt. He opened the Red Sea and he fed the Israelites with manna and quail.  He took care of all of their needs as he brought them to the edge of the Promised Land.
But at the point of decision, God's people say, 'We can't do it.' And the Bible says because of their unbelief, they were not allowed to go in and they missed all that God had planned for their lives.


taken from "On the High Road to Surrender"


O My People, I bring you out of bondage as rapidly as you are able to cope with freedom. I have led you by the way of the wilderness because in the discipline of lack coupled with liberty, the soul learns true obedience to God and is strengthened in faith. The newly freed man, while rejoicing in his liberty, knows not how to use it wisely. The chains have fallen from his feet but the soul is still in fetters. Moses had 80 years of freedom before he led the children of Israel out of the bondage of Egypt. A slave could not have led them out. Only a free man could lead them out, for bondage generates dependence and destroys initiative and a sudden flight from Egypt does not immediately restore these powers.  Slavery destroys the individual sense of responsibility. It denies man his personal dignity and forces him to be subject to man rather than to God. In all these areas there must be restoration when freedom is affected.

2011 - A year of giving up - "On the High Road of Surrender" - Day 6 - Elizabeths Story

Elizabeth’s Story

I’d like to share with you today the story of a wonderful lady I am blessed to have as a friend and blessed to have in my life. Last year sometime I changed my hours to 8:30 – 5:30. After this change occasionally I would be running a few minutes late leaving and I began to pass this lady on my way out. She was in her late 50’s or early 60’s and works on the cleaning crew which comes in late at night. She would always smile and say hello. Sometimes we’d exchange a few words, but I was always in a hurry because I had to pick up my son by 6:00. One afternoon several months back I asked her what her name was. She said, “Elizabeth” with that big smile of hers. Several weeks ago on my way out on an afternoon the week before Christmas, she said hello. I had a lot going on that day and week and felt the weight of the world on my shoulders more so as I couldn’t see things clearly at all. Someone I expected to show understanding that day to my circumstances had not. Someone, who was in a position too and I thought should have, had not. Remember my words later. Elizabeth wanted to help but as she asked me what was wrong and I tried to tell her, I really didn’t listen to anything she said. Not deliberately, I just couldn’t hear her. I left that day and didn’t sleep much that night. I didn’t see her until yesterday and she said, “Come here and see me, and tell me how you are doing. You looked so bad the last time I saw you and I knew something was wrong. I have been praying for you. I have been so worried about you. How are you?” We talked and I told her what had happened, and that things were a lot better and I was doing alright. She seemed so happy to hear that. She continually said, “You’ve been on my mind the last couple of weeks, and I was just hoping you was okay.” I asked her how her Christmas went and she said she spent it alone. She said, “That was okay though, I watched the snow fall and it was a pretty day.” We spent a few more minutes and I said I have to go. She said, “Okay, I am just soooo glad you are okay.”

As I walked out, I thought many times I look at someone who should do the right thing but doesn’t. Is in the position to do the right thing, but doesn’t. Someone who seems to be in a position in my life that could show mercy but doesn’t, and handles something that affects me directly and results in changing my circumstances directly (or so it seems), but chooses their own way.  As she had minutes before listened to me tell her that, I heard her words this time as I drove home. She had spoken softly and said, “Only the Lord makes the decisions for you and He makes the right ones. Look to Him.”  She told me that every morning when she gets up she says, “Lord, its Elizabeth. I am going to go ahead and give you my problems because you can do with them so much more than I. I do not know how to handle them or what to do so please take them and show me Your way! Thank you for your rest Lord.” I realized when she said this that just because someone is in a position of authority over us doesn’t mean they will do the right thing. We must not look to them or anyone else in our lives and let them dictate anything. I have to be careful in saying this, but as I see this lady, who probably makes barely above minimum wage, cleaning bathrooms each night with this big smile and this blessed outlook, who is in my life and cares about me and blessed me and prayed for me, I have to ask, why did she do that? When you would expect the president of your company to understand or even your supervisor, from my perspective the one who held the lowest position at our company cared the most for my situation. I learned a few things from Elizabeth. One- first and foremost I must give it to God.  But I give it to Him in surrender, it is something He takes. It still can’t be me who does it, not something I do in my energy. It has to be HIM. Second – things are not always as they seem to us. Someone can seem to and may have everything in the world but that is them. Never mind if the person you think should do something doesn’t, be thankful and blessed if you have someone who does. Pray for all those in our lives. I consider Elizabeth a friend. Someone who I see every so often impacts me so much. Someone who to me seems like she could be so unhappy looks like the richest lady on earth. There was so much truth God spoke to me yesterday through Elizabeth that I can’t get my head around it all. I know He speaks on today through her to you and you will take away much as well. Don’t worry about what you do not have; God takes care of what you need. He can only be spoken through and worked through when we quit worrying about ourselves and our wants and needs and let Him worry about that. When our life is surrendered! When I get up and say, “Lord, its Alan. I am going to go ahead and give you my problems because you can do with them so much more than I. I do not know how to handle them or what to do so please take them and show me Your way! Thank you for your rest Lord.”

God puts the right people in our lives and takes care of everything perfectly when we let Him

When He teaches me to see as He sees, I shall see as He sees, not as I see

2011 - A year of giving up - "On the High Road of Surrender" - Day 6 - The Disciplines of Freedom - Part 1

Over the last couple of days, I see and hear much directed towards taking and declaring our freedom that we have the opportunity to take hold of as well as the struggle of why it seems so hard to take hold of. A friend of mine used the term bondage. Have you ever thought of our lives in what we consider a free country to be not actually free? How naïve we would be if we were deceived into thinking that we are when we are not as “Americans”. I think most of us agree we all serve something. We will pour energy and time into something.  This concept of totally freedom as it is related to surrender. Read and mediate on the following excerpts over the next few days and decide for yourself. I was reading to my parents something from the book on surrender about freedom I will share shortly about slavery and they seemed as though they couldn’t relate. I thought about how many times I looked at my childhood as the reason why I am so selfish; however it dawned on me yesterday I was born selfish. Only by God can I not be. No amount of my effort can accomplish unselfishness. I cannot deliver myself from that. The following I hope to share over the next several days has been profound to me in helping me begin to understand. I hope and pray what is shared here helps you in some way and let it be used to help others as well. Feel free to input.  It takes all perspectives to see the entire picture. Iron sharpens Iron. May God be with us all in continual growth and understanding of His plan and His word.

Quotes are from several sources that may unfold this more or at least begin to take us down the road in maybe seeing a little clearer what so many of us are fighting with right now based on some comments I’ve noticed and especially my own feeling.

The following are three different passages taken from the book absolute surrender.  FACT: If I am not surrendered then I am a slave to something. 

From the book "Absolute Surrender" and the chapter “We are the branches”

"A branch is absolutely dependent upon the vine if it will bear fruit. It is required to do no work.  Only bear fruit.

There is a vine in Hampton Court London which sometimes bore a couple of thousand bunches of grapes. It was discovered not so very far away runs the River Thames and the vine had stretched its roots hundreds of yards under the ground until it came to the riverside, and there in the rich slime of the riverbed it had found rich nourishment and obtained moisture and the roots had drown the sap all that distance up and up into the vine and as a result there was a rich and abundant harvest. The vine labored and all the branch had to do was depend upon the vine and receive what it gave. 

What did the branch have to do? Nothing! Oh do you know the blessedness in the word nothing? Whenever I am something then God is not everything. If I become nothing then God can become all. Let us again ask the question: What has the branch to do? You know that precious, inexhaustible word that Christ used: ABIDE.

The branch abides in the vine. The life of the branch is total and absolute surrender. “Have you anything to do, little branch, besides bearing grapes?” “No nothing.” “Are you fit for nothing?” Fit for nothing! The bible says that a bit of vine cannot even be used as a pen; it is fit for nothing to be burned. “And now what do you understand little branch, about your relationship to the vine?” “My relationship to the vine is just this: I am utterly given up to the vine, and the vine can give me as much or as little sap as it chooses. Here I am at its disposal and the vine can do with me what it likes.”"

2011 - A year of giving up - "On the High Road of Surrender" - Day 5 - Victory in Adversity

taken from "On the High Road to Surrender"

Whenever you experience pain, know that I am knocking on the door of your heart. Nothing should be of any real concern to you except your relationship to ME and a right attitude toward others. Life brings unpleasant circumstances, but I say unto you, I am in the midst, causing all experiences, both pleasant and otherwise, to harmonize for your blessing and growth. I do not shield you from hardship. I give you victory while in the throes of adversity.

2011 - A year of giving up - "On the High Road of Surrender" - Day 4 - Hold Your Ground

taken from "On the High Road to Surrender"

I have not brought you out of the wilderness to allow you to be devoured by the giants of the land. I brought you out by a miracle of MY divine grace, and I bring you in that you may experience MY delivering power as you are confronted by the enemy in all his varied strategy and devices.

Stretch forth the hand of faith. Set foot upon the territory you wish to claim. I will move ahead of you and clear a path, but you must be determined to follow closely and to hold your ground without wavering.

2011 - A year of giving up - "On the High Road of Surrender" - Day 3 - A Heart Fixed on Me

taken from "On the High Road to Surrender"


As I have told you so often, KEEP YOUR HEART FIXED ON ME. Only thus will you have the needed stamina to keep your own soul from falling into discouragement. Only by My power will you be able to stand. Focus on My footsteps. The ways that others walk are not your concern. Jesus everyday sought the path of the Fathers will. Never once was He ever deflected for a moment by the way of life that others were pursing. So must you do. Walk alone with Me, and although I use you to minister to many, follow none. Follow Me. This is the inmost secret of a holy life: the doing of My will. The more perfectly you fulfill My will ( My specific plan for you), the more pleasing you are to ME; and I am more pleased with your obedience than your understanding, although you have a tendency to be more concerned with the latter! You often seek to understand things that are to complex and things that are not meant for you to know at this time. Be content to know that I have full knowledge and be willing to wait for the day in which I have promised that the many impenetrable mysteries of life shall be unfolded. 

2011 - A year of giving up - "On the High Road of Surrender" - Day 2 - Hearing & Doing

Probably one of the hardest struggles for me each day is determining whether or not what I am motivated to do is my will or not. I thought today about when I finally realized others will always let me down, but still I love them. And letting my child know I expect him to make mistakes enables him to be so much more comfortable trying, and helps him to learn; how so do I being human also, expect so much more of myself. At what point did I think that somehow it was good to burden myself with all of this pressure of making every right decision and never messing up, if it is not good for those I love, and not expected from He who loves me. Maybe because messing up can cause so much grief I vow - no way will I let that happen to me again. But if sometimes I still do, what does that tell me. If I am convinced that learning for me is fostered in the same environment in which I let others learn and I am given to learn, how smooth that learning could be if I just gave myself to it. What could be the one thing I could do differently.

taken from " On the High Road to Surrender"


"Listen intently for My voice, for you cannot obey Me, unless you first HEAR. However, your ability to hear, is sharpened by your desire to be obedient. The functioning of the ear and of the hand are inseparable in the Spirit. They always operate in conjunction with each other. He who HEARS, must be also he who DOES what he has heard. Until then he will not be given another word. I am not hiding myself from the man who does not hear Me... He has cut himself off by self-will and disobedience."