Surrender to God

There’s a recurring theme in my bad dreams. A bad guy is chasing me. So I try to escape. I would climb over fences or climb rooftops, but the fences and roofs never end. There would be another fence to climb over, another roof to pull myself onto.

Meanwhile, I’m running out of time. And the climb is getting harder. My limbs get heavier. My body exhausted. Then the enemy is upon me just as I reach the last fence or roof, only there’s no way out.

The last fence leads to a dead end, a brick wall. The last roof leads to a netted ceiling. I can see freedom. I can see salvation. I can feel it. I can even cut my way to it, if I only had scissors. But I’m trapped. There’s no way out, and there’s no rescue coming.

Last night it happened.

With ninjas.

I was trying to escape ninjas, so I began to climb pagoda style roofs. I saw a samurai sword stuck in a tree so I pulled it out. It was made of wood and chipped because it had been in a duel with a steel samurai sword. But the wood was special. It was strong and can withstand just about anything.

I took the sword for protection and continued to climb. But a ninja appeared and threw a shuriken (ninja star) at me, barely missed my head. He demanded I turn over the wooden sword to him. I did because I was afraid for my life and didn’t realize how important that sword was.

I started to climb again, knowing there would be no end to the roofs. Or if there was, it would be netted. I would still be trapped. But something different happened. I felt a reassurance wash over me. There was no more danger. No more need to climb. No need to escape. I was safe.

Because I turned over the sword.

The Bible says, “A dream comes when there are many cares” (Ecclesiastes 5:3a). I don’t need a shrink to tell me that I’m trying to run away from something, escape something, or fight against something that, deep down, I know I couldn’t win.

That very special and important sword was me. My will and inner strength. I am strong and can withstand just about anything, but I’m not invincible. I am chipped. I am worn out. I will break one day.

God’s trying to get my attention. He’s asking I turn myself over to Him. Now I have a choice. Do I keep fighting and climbing? Or do I surrender? Why did I surrender in last night’s dream?

I think God is reaching me through my dreams. I’ve never surrendered before, and He showed me that when I did, when I gave up that sword, I was out of danger. I realized that I wasn’t in a bad situation after all. I was safe. I had been safe all along.

I’ve been fighting and trying to escape. Maybe the lesson hasn’t sunk in because this is what I wrote about in the last post. I’m exactly where God wants me to be. I may think there’s an enemy coming. I may think it’s a bad situation. I may be afraid for my life. But my perspective is off because I’m holding onto myself.

It’s time to surrender to God.

You, friend, are a special sword too. You’re strong. You can withstand just about anything. Your experiences have taught you many things and helped shaped your character. But you still get chipped. You still get worn out. And one day, you could break.

It’s time to surrender to God.

To stop fighting. Stop trying to escape. Stop being afraid. Stop trying to accomplish things our way.

God is trying to catch our attention. He wants us to surrender to Him, because if we do, there’s a better future for us.

I’m tired of fighting, running, climbing to dead ends. Are you?

Linking up with The Single Life, Quitting Thursday, and Thriving Thursdays.