I have to be honest and say that I grew up genuinely believing that life was about me. I thought it was about my wants, my dreams, my desires, my goals….I believed it was all about me. I’m working through the 70 resolutions of Jonathan Edwards and resolution #62 says…

Resolved, Never to do any thing but my duty, and then, according to Eph. vi. 6-8. to do it willingly and cheerfully, as unto the Lord, and not to man: knowing that whatever good thing any man doth, the same shall he receive of the Lord. 

Just so we are on the same page, Ephesians 6:6-8 says, “6 Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. 7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free.”

Edwards understood something fundamental about life and it is not popular at all in American culture: submission. Life is not about you and it’s not about me. You and I are not the star of the show and we’re never going to be. There is already an undisputed and eternal star of the universal show and his name is Jesus Christ. Our job is to willingly surrender our lives to him that we would be used in a story that is all about him. If we choose to not surrender for whatever reason, we will miss out on what life is truly about. Like it or not, this is the nature of the story that our lives are wrapped up in.

I’ve never liked the notion of surrender or submission. It feels like losing. It feels like defeat. I’ve always subscribed more to the idea of never quitting. Never letting someone else have the last word. Never take no for an answer. In fact, there are parts of this mentality that are good and that are interwoven into the American dream. But this mentality can be taken too far. As much as God is your Heavenly Father and desires to have a genuine friendship with you, he is also the King of heaven and earth. A King to be obeyed. Obedience is one of those ugly words that I’ve always had a tough time with. Don’t tell me to obey. Don’t tell me what to do. I’ll do what I want and you can deal with it. God has had to lead me into the understanding that life is found and can only be found in submission and obedience to him. Have you found that yet? Do you still feel like life is about you? I have for a long time. Of course, I wouldn’t have told you that because of how foolish and arrogant it sounds but that’s what I thought. I’m truly starting to learn that purpose is found in submission and victory is found in surrender.