Life is for the Living! But, in this day and age, can we honestly believe that a good, fulfilled and peaceful life is attainable? With the daily pressures and escalating trouble people are facing, all over the world, and from all walks of life; can an excellent quality of life become our reality? Well, according to the Word of God, it most certainly can. In John 10:10, Jesus declares that the thief, being the devil, comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. But He, Jesus, came that we may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows). Proverbs 3:2, promises a life that is well worth living and full of tranquillity, inward and out! Since we know the Word of God to be true, and that God is not a respecter of persons, there is no reason for us to believe otherwise.
To live a full, satisfied life that is productive and at the same time, full of peace and tranquillity, seems so idyllic! Yet, it's a promise the Lord Jesus has secured for every believer to enjoy, if we dare to open our lives to it.
How do we attain it? Well, since the circumstances of life are constantly changing, we can certainly agree that they cannot be recognised as our source of a good, peaceful life. After all, we all know that physical things and riches, while bringing temporary happiness, can never fulfil or completely satisfy the human soul. After all, the news feeds we read are full of stories of the rich and famous, who seemingly have all the things their hearts desire; ending their lives because of their desperate unhappiness. So since the source of true happiness goes deeper than what is on the surface, perhaps it's worth digging a little deeper to discover its mysteries. For example, complete surrender was Paul's key to a fulfilled life.
In my own searching, I have come to understand that to resolve our inner struggles and complete our quest for true happiness in life, as children of God, there must be a clear and accurate perspective of who we are in Christ Jesus. In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul confessed to have found the key to true fulfilment and the ultimate purpose of life. He believed it had everything to do with intimately knowing the person of Jesus Christ and the power of His resurrection (Philippians 3:10). He often linked this theory with the importance of dying to his own selfish nature, and absolutely surrendering his personal independence to God. He spoke about abandoning the idea of self-preservation and instead, leaning and relying entirely on the trustworthy nature of God. Paul referred to a kind of life that is fully enveloped and given over to the complete love of God, and absolute devotion to Him. He spoke of our very identity being in Christ alone, and not in anything of ourselves. To me, that seems to mean a total yielding and deliberate turning away from self; and completely conforming to God's nature and character. I have to say, at first thought, this seems to kick against the core of who we are as individuals. What about that internal struggle for self-preservation and identity? Isn't that what has kept the human race in existence? Isn't that what causes those who are oppressed, to rise up and take dominion, instead of being dominated over?
Well, I have certainly given this much thought, and have consequently found, that when we, as individuals, really know the Lord, we see this concept of complete surrender, from a very different perspective. The more time we spend getting to know the Lord, in His Word and prayer; we begin to experience and enjoy His overwhelming, unconditional and absolute love for us. This love, is the game changer. It makes all the difference in how we perceive ourselves and our God. If we don't 'get' the love factor, we will always have a missing link when it comes to our walk of faith. Personally knowing and experiencing God's love for us is what fuels and sustains our beliefs. It crosses the bridge between a mechanical and clinical religion to a spontaneous and most satisfying relationship with God.
Like the Apostle Paul, I do believe the missing link to understanding the true meaning of absolute surrender to the person, nature and will of God, is LOVE itself. Love is what answers the question, why we should surrender all and completely sacrifice our own self-preservation, to become one with our Creator.
