Surrenders

There is an exercise called "surrenders" that one of the instructors at the gym really likes to use in her classes. You have your hands raised in the air like you are surrendering and bend one knee at a time down to the ground and stand back up. With your arms raised and moving to the ground you have to really rely on your core for stability. After just doing a few your heart rate goes up and everything can start hurting...seriously. There are some regulars in the class that sigh when we are told we are going to do them because of how hard they are and how you can feel after doing several sets. Though challenging as they are, it's incredibly effective as a whole body exercise.

Our spiritual lives should take this posture. When we truly surrender our intentions, hopes, dreams, wants, desires, etc to God we have to fall to our knees and lift our hands up to Him. We have to be trusting to the Lord because He is at the core of  who we are - keeping us stable even if it doesn't seem like it while in the moment. We will continue to pray and offer it up as many times as we need to - even if it hurts or we are too fatigued to keep going. But once we surrender, it is to God. It is no longer in our human hands, but His. He can and does make all things new every morning. (Lamentations 3:22-23) And just remember, as you are doing your surrenders, there is a world full of others right there next to you doing the same thing.     

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All that I am came from you God.

Be present here with me, please God.

And in this moment, I give you my thoughts, desires, needs, and dreams.

Not one of these things may be what you have in mind for me Lord. 

Do what you will for me and my life Lord - I give you all of me.

Open my heart to be conformed to your own.

Now and forever in this moment I am yours!

Amen.

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Simply a little pencil in God's hand,

Elizabeth