Surrender Isn’t Losing — It’s Trusting

Happy June Brave Ones! There is a word many of us struggle with.

Surrender.

To some, surrender sounds weak.
It sounds like defeat.
Like waving a white flag and giving up.

But biblically, surrender was never about losing.

It was always about trust.

As humans, we spend so much of our lives trying to hold everything together.
We grip tightly to outcomes, relationships, finances, reputation, fear, dreams, and pain. We want certainty. Control feels safe.

But Jesus continually invited people into another way of living.

A surrendered life.
Not a passive life.
Not a lazy life.
But a yielded life.

Jesus said:
“Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” — Matthew 16:25

At first, that verse can feel confusing.
What did He mean?

Jesus was teaching that the tighter we cling to our own way, the more exhausted and empty we become. But when we release our lives into God’s hands, we actually discover the life we were created for.

Surrender means:

“I trust You more than my fear.”
“I trust You more than my understanding.”
“I trust You even when I cannot see the outcome.”

That doesn’t mean surrender is easy. Far from it and a daily choice.

Even Jesus wrestled in the garden before the cross.

He prayed honestly.
He sweat drops of blood.
He felt anguish.

Yet He still said:

“Not my will, but Yours be done.” — Luke 22:42

That is what surrender looks like.

It is not emotionless obedience.
It is honest trust. And I think it makes Papa God proud of His kids when we are brave enough to surrender.

Sometimes surrender means laying down control.
Sometimes it means forgiving when you’d rather stay angry.
Sometimes it means waiting instead of forcing doors open. Waiting can be so hard!
Sometimes it means trusting God with your children, your future, your healing, or your
heartbreak.

And if we are honest?
Most of us want resurrection without crucifixion.
Victory without surrender.

But the Kingdom of God often works upside down from the world.

The seed must fall before it grows.
The hands must open before they can receive.
The heart must soften before it can heal.

Surrender is not God taking from us.

It is God freeing us from carrying what we were never meant to hold alone.

Maybe today surrender simply looks like whispering:

“Jesus, I trust You with this.”

Not perfectly.
Not fearlessly.
Just honestly.

And perhaps that small prayer is where peace begins.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” — Proverbs 3:5

The beautiful thing about surrender is this:
When we place our lives into God’s hands, we discover they were safest there all along.

Look up! The best is yet to come!

Love, Julie