Surrender

                                                       SURRENDER

I have been pondering lately about how surrender can come in waves. 

It is a minute by minute, day by day, week by week of letting go and giving it back to Jesus when a fresh wave comes and knocks us off our feet and our flesh wants to pick it back up and we have to surrender again what we have given to Him.

We surrender our flesh and let Jesus take over after failing and falling

We surrender our souls to the Savior over and over again when that battle that pulls and tugs us tosses us off our feet

We surrender our will to His when it is scary and we want to do what seems safe and easy

We surrender fears to him even though the world and the enemy scream hopelessness to us 

We surrender our doubts, crises, family, unknowns, hopes, failures, dreams, finances, marriage, and all things in between

We surrender as we wait and give up all, recklessly abandoning all our comfort and ease of walking in our own wisdom and timing and what makes since to this age

 

We surrender in the wait

I have found that waiting on Jesus can be one of the hardest things to surrender. It’s not the not knowing IF He will come through, it’s the not knowing how and when that will be; of what we will have to face in the unknown while we wait.  Do you think that is why there are such verses about waiting for us to cling to? Did Jesus know 2000+ years ago that we would have a hard time. Did He know my impatience and frustration for not having the road clearly highlighted before us even as HE willingly laid down all for us.
Did He know in my weakness that I would be frustrated because I said Yes to Him and then I had to wait? Did He know I was so stinking weak? 

Yes, He knew. 

Will He waste it-the waiting? 

No-He will build, refine, and strengthen me in the midst.

Will I forget this and double fist chocolate chips in my mouth out of stress-um..yeah

BUT He will love me anyways…even if my pants get a little tight or I become hormotional and get a little yelly…

I will SURRENDER and come back to Jesus and give Him the weight I’m trying to bare on my own.. 

You see, I know that HE is a good Father and is always waiting with open arms to envelope me in the best and biggest daddy hug there is, If only I surrender and choose to wait on Him instead of making a mess on my own. 

There is so much surrender that comes in waiting but there are so many promises that come too

“Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint .”

                        Why is waiting so hard? Why is it so hard to Be Still?

                      Are you waiting? Surrendering? Eating chocolate by the fistfull?

Jesus, teach us to be still and wait on you. Not just for a miracle or a word or even deliverance. But let us be still and wait because you are so much better than all else. Your presence is better than all the good things you bring. King Jesus, we wait and sit at your feet because we don't want to be anywhere else but in Your Love and Presence. ALmighty God, you are worth it all-the good, the hard, and the wait.

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusted in Thee!”

Lord, stay our mind on Thee-no matter the season, hard, beating waves, gas prices, or tantrum toddlers. Your name is Peace and may Your name be always on our lips.

Idaho update-

In case you missed the theme in season- We are waiting. hahaha

We have just finished our house that we live in(besides a few touch ups when we move out. HELLO 7 kids) and have been watching the market in the northern panhandle region that we feel stirred toward.  The Lord has made some amazing connections to parts of the body and to people who have the same heart and call as us. We’ve had many words of encouragement and pictures and promises shared to us by the body we are around now. 

So we are taking all these words and encouragements and writing them on our hearts as we WAIT and SURRENDER for the Lord and trust His provisions. We have watched the market and even put bids on a few places but every time have kept our hands open to Him. We want more than anything what He wants for us.  He has protected us thus far. Ryan finishes his last job here sometime the end of July/beginning of August. So our plan is if nothing comes up before then to just drag our camper across the country and live in it until we get a place.

A few prayer request:

-That we would trust Jesus in the waiting. We are ready to go but not knowing if we are going to be living in a camper, a shack, or a house has been kinda nerve racking. The market is about 2-3x more expensive there than here.  So we are starting from the bottom but feel so blessed that we can start at all. He w
ill provide and He is worthy.  We just want to say “here am i, send me” but kinda feel like we need a place to land especially with our Circus following along.  Idaho doesn’t know what’s coming. 

-Our kids. I know that we are all counting the cost. One of the hardest things for me has been trusting Jesus to fill in the gap for our children and all they are leaving behind. They are a part of an incredible group of youth and body that they’ve grownup with, known, and loved all of their lives. Gosh I love these kids—Kids who love Jesus are such a sweet and pure picture of the body. Prayers for them as they walk out these transitions and grow in Jesus in their surrender. 

-Ryan is turning down jobs left and right here because we know the Lord has told us to move. He will be building the business from the ground up in Idaho(Lord willing) to support our family and ministry. This is like a crazy trust exercise. Prayers for provision, wisdom, and placement in this but we know God will work it all out for our good! He has gone before us. He is worthy.