I’ve been reflecting recently on the nature of Christianity. It seems that the more I mature in Christ, the more my life seems to be about surrender, not figuring it out or getting it right. Becoming simpler and more childlike seems to be a bigger part of living for Christ than does gaining theology or social status.
It also seems less about fighting. Many people these days are engaged in a fight of some kind. They fight injustice, politics, ideas and ideals, other people. Yes, there is a time and place for this. There is also a time when we ultimately surrender these fights to Jesus, knowing that this is His world and He’s in charge. This kind of surrender is countercultural; it looks like losing, like giving up. And indeed it is a form of giving up, a yielding for something better. It is a pure kind of worship.
With this in mind, I’ve written a poem of sorts about the good and bad this life has to offer – and the surrender that comes with letting Christ be Lord.
All to Jesus.
When riches abound and things go my way,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
When income collapses and my contingency pans fall through,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
When my body fails me in new and incomprehensible ways,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
When trouble becomes my daily bread,
And worry is my steadfast companion,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
When my mind seems to slip through my fingers,
Drifting beyond my reach,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
When others have let me down,
Even those I think ought to know better,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
When I try to forgive,
And feel the hatred beating against the walls of my chest,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
When I witness suffering in others,
And wonder at the meaning of it all,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
When my rights are violated,
And I am failed by those systems designed to protect me,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
When places of safety and sanctuary
Morph into terrors and nightmares,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
When in my daily grind,
I fail to find the satisfaction promised by the world,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
In disappointment, in fear, in regret,
In mistrust and miscommunication,
In politics, in passivity,
In bounty and in burnout,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
In the final analysis,
In the quiet solitude of prayer,
In exhausted stillness,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
With hunger and yearning,
With vulnerability and need,
With simple childlike trust,
All to Jesus, I surrender.
Though I cannot see,
I will follow.
All to Jesus, I surrender.
© 2017 Steph Penny.