A Prayer to Surrender All
By Alicia Searl
“Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.'” - Matthew 16:24
I often think about what it must have been like to live in the days of Jesus. Even more, what it must have been like to encounter Jesus face to face, witness the miracles, touch His cloak, or better yet, be one of His followers or beloved disciples.
The personal relationships that Jesus built with each of His disciples is truly touching. The beautiful thing is that we get to experience it all and can almost hear their conversations and interactions as we read through each account in the New Testament. Jesus’ teachings were not only intimate as He gathered the disciples around and shared wisdom and truth with such love and grace, they were also a direct message to us as well!
Yet, some of the lessons must have been difficult to hear and understand, just as we struggle to read and decipher His Word today. I specifically think of the verse noted above for instance. We see parallel verses in Mark and Luke, where Jesus is informing the disciples that if they wish to follow Him, they must deny themselves and take up their own cross.
Jesus has reminded the disciples of the price they will pay for following Him. The cost is denial of self and to bear their own cross. This is the price we all must pay when we seek to follow Jesus and fully surrender our lives to the one and only God. So, what exactly does that look like?
First, we are called to deny ourselves. That means to disown our own interests, desires, and natural tendencies and replace them with what God loves and honors. It’s essentially a mindset shift that chooses and craves to be more like Jesus – His attitude, His mannerisms, His faithfulness.
Second, we are called to take up our own cross. The cross was a bold instrument of execution in Jesus’ day. It was meant for pain and torture along with public humiliation. As followers, we must be ready (and willing) to undergo suffering and shame. That is because this world will mock, ridicule, reject, and torment those who claim Christ as Lord.
Lastly, we are to follow Him by surrendering all. Jesus is the direct access and path to a good, righteous, and abundant life beyond this one (John 14:6). When we follow His way, truth, and life examples, we fully surrender our lives to Him and seek His will and way.
So, we must ask ourselves, are we surrendering all to Christ in order to follow Him?
Let’s pray:
O Lord, we come to You with such grateful hearts. You are such a good and gracious Father. You provide us ways in which to live this life with the assurance of some many precious promises. You tell us You will give us strength, rest, and care for each of our needs. We know when we place our trust in You that You will work everything out for good (Romans 8:28).
We humbly submit ourselves to You, Lord and seek Your face. We surrender our heart, mind, soul, and physical body all to You. We ask that You give us a means to seek after Your heart and the plan and purpose You have for our lives. Align our desires and passion to Your passions and allow us to be shaped and molded to be more and more like Jesus.
Grant us strength to bear the cross and sufficient power to resist the evil ways of this world. Please forgive us where we fail and cave under pressure, while offering us the courage to fight the everyday battles. Be in our midst through each and every situation, showing us areas in our lives where we can improve and bring glory to Your holy name.
Guide us to the righteous path where we humbly step out in faith, seeking Your way, absorbing the truth found in Your Word, and fully surrendering our lives over to You. We give it all to You, our strengths and weaknesses, our hopes and dreams, our desire for approval and acceptance. Help us say “yes” to You alone, Lord.
We wholeheartedly want to follow You. We love you, Lord. In Jesus' name, amen.
Photo credit: ©GettyImages/Boonyachoat
Related Resource: Jesus Calling - Stories of Faith
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