“ But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.”
Philippians 3:7
One of the biggest challenges new followers of Jesus have is letting go of everything they’ve spent their life building. Oh, I don’t mean letting go as in throw it all away. I mean letting go as in surrendering ownership of everything to Jesus, every dream, every success, every plan. We must let him have all the plans we’ve committed our lives towards, so that He may either confirm or change our plans. To belong to Christ, we must let Him have complete control. How do find the power to let go and let God – resurrection!
Jesus had to let go of everything He’d known for 33 years in the Garden of Gethsemane. He had to trust His Father. And, as He did, He gained everything back and so much more in His resurrection to eternal life as King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. At the very heart of the Christian experience is found the greatest paradox. If we give up everything…we gain everything.
I think many people struggle with such letting go because they haven’t learned to trust anyone but themselves. However, if there is anyone we can trust it’s our creator – Jesus Christ. In giving up everything, that is counting all as loss for Christ, we actually gain more than we can ever imagine. In Christ, we gain assurance that every need we ever have will always be met.
There will never come a time when Jesus will let us down, or forget to meet a need. We don’t even have to remind Him. One of my old supervisors in ministry used to always say, “Jesus has never let me down…He’s scared me to death a few times, but He’s never let me down.”
Jesus has a plan for our lives, and He always has. Yes, it can be scary at times. We have to learn to trust. We can hear His promise of assurance in the Lord’s words to his covenant people through Isaiah the prophet: “ For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.” (Jer. 29:11) Yet, even that was not a blanket promise without a contingency. If we read on we discover that God’s plans are realized when we seek Him with “all our heart”. (Vs 13)
Remember, if you want to win in this life, you have to surrender. And, on the other side of our surrender is resurrection power. Have you found it yet?
Remember, Christ is risen…and so are you!
Grace & Peace,
+Pastor Brad
Prayer
Gracious Lord, you give generously to all who truly seek you. Help me to surrender ALL to you today, that you may raise me up in the power of the resurrection to the life You want me to live. Amen. Alleluia!