Good Morning Gorgeous,

It’s a brand new day. A fresh new start. A new day to rise and be free, totally free!

What’s amazing to me is that to be free in Christ is to surrender all to Him.

It seems counter cultural in a world that teaches that life is all about doing whatever you want, chasing your dreams, being led by your feelings, and living a life that is very self focused.

The world teaches that THIS is what freedom looks like, going after all you want in life. YOLO and so if you chase every dream, you’ll have no regrets.

The problem is most people living this way have a path filled with regret, loss, disappointment, and are wrapped up in all kinds of chains that the enemy has wrapped them up in whether it be addiction, rejection, or emptiness. It’s like all that self gratification just leaves us emptier and emptier.

And then steps in sweet, sweet Jesus. He didn’t come to condemn, but to save. And in order to save us, He calls us up and out of sin and selfish living. Some will argue that Jesus dined with tax collectors, so it’s okay to follow Jesus and keep sinning.

The truth is, yes he dined with tax collectors, but they didn’t REMAIN tax collectors! They were changed by His Presence. He called them people who were lost and needed saving. He didn’t celebrate or even look away from their sin. He sat with them, loved on them, and called them out on their sinful ways. Then, He invited them to new life. Life free from chains of the enemy. A life free from demonic oppression and a life filled with restoration and fullness.

To recieve all God has for us, we have to leave that old life behind. We turn away from the flesh and move from being concerned with what we want to what Jesus desires for our life.

Wow! The truth of the Kingdom of Life is the opposite of what we’ve been trained up to believe will bring happiness.

And happiness is generally tied to temporary satisfaction based on the current situation. When things are all going well, we have happiness.

Jesus offers the real deal and something far better than happiness. He wants to infuse us with joy and peace! And joy can be anchored within us no matter the weather! The joy and peace of Jesus can be accessed in darkness, loss, disappointment, valley lows, and stormy weather.

But to receive it all, we must go completely counter culture and surrender literally everything over to the Lord Jesus. He is ruler and King and when we submit to His Lordship, there is safety and protection. A king is responsible for the safety of the subjects in his kingdom. And when you serve King Jesus, you are under His protective covering.

Lots of people feel comfortable with Jesus as Savior and Jesus as Friend. Jesus as Provider and Jesus as Comforter. But to come to Jesus in full surrender and live fully committed to serving Him as Lord over all makes some people uncomfortable. I think there may be a fear there like they are losing control over their life and that can be a bit scary. Oh but that’s where faith and trust step in and your relationship with Jesus goes to a new level.

I distinctly remember when I began to get serious and pray God’s will to prevail in my life over my will. My heart would pound so loud I could hear it in my ears when I began to pray that God could have every single area of my life and do whatever He wanted to whenever He wanted however He wanted to do it.

My prayers would sound something like this:

Dear Lord, I give you everything. You can take anything that needs to go. You can shut any doors that You want to shut. You can remove relationships that are hurting me or dishonoring You. You can shift, prune, and realign anything in my life that needs to be changed. Lord, I trust You. I really trust that You only want what’s the very best for me. I trust Your yes and I trust Your no. As You remove things and reveal new things to me, I receive every blessing and every open door. Give me eyes to see, ears to hear, and feet that obey You.

In Jesus’s Name, Amen.

And to pray that way, giving God full and complete access is total abandonment of self and total surrender to a good, good Father. And whether or not we can pray like that depends on our view of God.

If you see Him as a loving Father who only wants the VERY best in your life, you can pray that way with the trust of a child. If you see Him as King and ruler over all, and you are willing to surrender and give all devotion to your King, so that you can partake in the supernatural ways of His Kingdom, you will gladly surrender.

BUT if you are afraid of God, unsure of His goodness, and unwilling to be under His Lordship over your own plans, it is hard to pray like that. You are trying to serve two masters, God and yourself at the same time. Doubleminded living and thinking leads to all kinds of frustration in our spiritual lives and physical lives.

We get frustrated that we don’t have the peace of God and the abundant life He promises. We are uneasy often. We swing back and forth from on fire for Jesus to angry that this faith walk isn’t what we thought it would be.

The answer is found in giving Jesus absolutely everything, even our expectations of what following Him was supposed to look like.

With your total surrender, God will move in ways that you never thought possible. Breakthrough comes. New levels of healing. New revelation in the spiritual realm as He reveals Himself to you as good and worthy of everything. The Bible says that He is looking across the earth for hearts submitted to Him.

So yesterday while I was in prayer, my prayers began to declare His Lordship over my life and every single area of my life. I began to declare that all that I was and everything in my life would bow to the Name of Jesus. And it was so beautiful. A life totally under His care is a carefree life like that of a young child. We can walk in total obedience to Him and just trust Him with absolutely everything!!!

Imagine a life where evey hardship and every storm and every unexpected event, you could just lift it up and say, “My Daddy’s got this. My Daddy’s got that. I’m going to walk and do what He tells me to. I’m gonna get up and do my part, but beyond that, He’s in control. I’m not spending a moment in worry or doubt or fear or frustration. My Daddy will supply my every need.”

What a refreshing way to live!!!!!

So here goes my prayer from yesterday. I am going to share it here as my closing prayer, and invite you to pray it with me!

Dear Heavenly Father,

Wow, You are good! You are Holy. You are Lord, and I invite You into each and every part of my life emotionally, physically, spiritually, and relationally. I surrender ALL today. Not just the easy parts, but everything comes under Your Rule today. Everything in my home must bow to the Name of Jesus!

My mind must bow to the Name of Jesus. Help me to captivate every thought and make it obedient to Christ.

My will must bow to the Name of Jesus. I must go where You lead me.

My emotions must bow to the Name of Jesus. Let me be led by the truth of Your Word and not my fleeting and ever changing feelings.

My marriage must bow to the Name of Jesus. Let us honor You with every decision.

My children must bow to the Name of Jesus. Let every single one of them be sealed unto salvation and serve you with their whole heart.

My finances and the way I spend money must bow to the Name of Jesus.

My physical body and all that it does or doesn’t do must bow at the Name of Jesus. Let my yes and my no be to honor Your ways.

My tongue and every word I speak must bow at the Name of Jesus. Let every word honor and glorify You.

My appetite must bow at the Name of Jesus. Let every craving be for the things of the Kingdom and not of the world.

My work must bow at the Name of Jesus. Remind me each day that the work of my hands must always be honest and lifted up to You as an act of worship.

My recreation must bow at the Name of Jesus. Everything my family and I do for fun must be pure and without partaking in sin.

Lord, I give You all in trust and obedience. To call You Lord is to live a life where You are actually LORD over me. I trust You fully and completely to work in any way and in any area, so that all that I am and all that I do glorifies You.

In Jesus’s Name, Amen.

Be blessed friends and be free to surrender it all!

Vanessa Lynn

Did this post bless you? Please consider sharing using the social media buttons or sending to a friend!

And if you came across this post and you haven’t yet accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, may I encourage you that by choosing Him you receive eternal life in heaven, BUT ALSO abundant life NOW. Following Him is the most precious adventure you have ever taken!! All you have to do to get started is to pray and receive Him as Lord. The Bible says to confess Jesus Christ as Lord and believe with your heart the precious gospel message that Jesus taught. Repent of your sins which means simply to ask Jesus to forgive you and then choose to walk away from them and go in the New Direction that God is calling you to. Confess or speak that you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who died for you, that He was resurrected from the dead, and ascended to heaven. And that you recieve Him as your Lord and Savior. That you are sorry for your sins and you recieve His FULL and complete forgiveness for every wrong you’ve ever committed. And that you are choosing to follow Him now and leave the ways of the world behind for the things of Jesus!!! And if you mean that with your heart, you are saved and set free to live a new life free of sin! The Bible says you are now a brand new creation! Old things have passed away and new things have come!!! The Bible also says that all of heaven rejoices whenever a person is saved!!!! Just imagine the party being held in heaven on your behalf right now!!!