Caught in a daze of ecstasy the mind is finally freed of
constantly focusing on failure. The mind
has literally been freed of this, but then, freed for what. The answer quite simply is free to love. People believe they experience love
throughout their lives, most in a few different contexts. The loving relationships of parent and child,
friend to friend, and the romantic interest with a significant other, are all
representations of love. But even within
all these various contexts the love in the relationships suffers from human
weakness. The biggest culprit in ruining
relationships and lessening the true joy of pure love is the same root of all
evil, self.
Self interest is the reason why people say a marriage is a
50 / 50 proposition. But this is fallacy
as it simply does not work. Making the
decision to give, but only to a self-described pre-defined limit, is a virtual
surety for disappointment. Whether by
intent, or by omission, partners disappoint each other – particularly when
focused on their own self interests. The
only recipe for a truly successful marriage is 100 / 100. The difference is not just numeric, it is
substantive. It means both partners will
give 100% of themselves, ALL the time, no matter what, no matter when, no
matter how – and perhaps most importantly – no matter what their partner does
with this gift. Doing this is nearing
the character of Christ, and being successful at it, requires the knowledge we
have uncovered of surrender to His will.
Applying the 100 / 100 rule to dating tends to lead back to
marriage again. Although in all honesty
the energy this takes is quite difficult to pull off in a multiple partner
scenario; which is why the context of marriage makes the idea of giving 100% of
yourself to your partner more palatable.
It takes intimacy to do this. It
takes trust to do this. It is not so
much about what you get out of the relationship from your partner, but what you
get out of it from SERVING your partner.
The service is the reward. This
concept is a constant in all types of loving relationships.
Parents love their children instinctually, but this does not
eliminate human weakness in the parents.
Quite frankly parents get tired.
In fact, not just tired, fricking exhausted. They just want sleep. If they cannot get that, then just some quiet
moments might be a welcome relief. Does
this diminish the love they feel for the noisy child? No.
But it does explain some the hair-brained ideas that leak out of a
parents mouth when at wits end dealing with an energetic self willed
child. Some of these sentiments do not
make sense. Some defy physics. But it is human weakness that exerts itself
when the bumps in the road occur. The
truth is that parents give to their children on a level that children do not
understand or appreciate. The giving is
more automatic, and less appreciated.
The difference between children and adults, are that adults understand
and appreciate how much sacrifice has been done on their account – children
remain blind to this concept.
The idea of giving 100% of yourself seems inconsistent with
your history and ability levels. It is
because this idea is not achievable within human limits or human strength. Over time, even the most patient, most giving
person, wears out, wears thin, and exerts signs of human frailty. Christians understand human weakness as they
have been immersed in it. So forgiveness
provides the glue to repair the cracks, breaks, and fractures human frailty
causes. But living in a world of true
surrender, means living in a world where the normal limits are not applicable
anymore. It is not you, but Him. It is not your strength, but His strength. It is not your body’s limits that will
provide the gateway, it is your body subordinated to the superhuman abilities
of God Himself.
Unburdened by self inflicted pain, and armed with the
exhilaration of freedom from self inflicted evil, the mind and body are renewed
in an energy that does not diminish. The
entire intent of liberation is to make you free from what would have previously
bound you. Freedom from fear for
example; imagine yourself free from the fear that interrupts or impedes your
abilities to love another. You need not
fear rejection any longer, as you KNOW you are loved beyond measure by the
source of all love. God’s love for you
is deeply personal as you have already begun to experience. His love and His will, will guide you to the
proper desire of your heart.
Subordinating your will to His will, and allowing your desires to be
molded to the desires He would have for you – frees you. It frees you from fear of rejection, fear of
betrayal, fear of being ridiculed. These
responses come from those who have not had the intimacy that you are
experiencing with God.
Imagine what Mary’s life must have been like with a child
like Jesus to raise. Jesus was and is
the source of all Love. He was ALWAYS
willing to serve, to be useful, to do for others – his mother would have been
no exception, rather, as the closest member of his contacts, he would have been
serving her perhaps most of all, just due to proximity. Jesus gave of himself 100% every day. He subordinated His will to that of His
Father. And what is our God like? They are one in service to others, in Their
particular case, in service to Their own creation. Self interest does not enter the
equation. Jesus was burdened with the
same human infirmities as we all have, yet through constant submission to His
Father, He served. So can we. So should we.
Free to love. Ever
wondered what it would be like to have the time to do what you want to do. Time management like everything else in our
lives before surrender is prioritized by our self interest. But surrender brings a new outlook on what we
have time to do. Specifically the time
we would have previously spent on serving self is now free to serve
another. It comes packaged with the
strength and energy we need, and is activated by the faith in motion of
stepping forward despite the outlook. We
move knowing that what we need will be there when we need it. Whether that be funds, time, energy, or even
mental ability. Nothing is restricted
from those who surrender their own wills, to the will of our Father. The exhilaration of liberation knows no
bounds.
The most fundamental change that comes from real surrender
is the source of happiness moves from the transient insatiable focus on self to
the fulfilling and lasting service to others.
Happiness deepens. Contentment
reaches a level you did not think possible.
It all comes from the surrender of your will to His. It all comes from accepting the entire gift
He offers, not just a part of it. As the
core of you changes, you become more like Christ. You begin to take joy in what He takes joy
in. And conversely you begin to
experience pain in what He finds pain in.
But the change is so complete, so wonderful, and so enlightening – it
will be the reason that world wants to know why you are so different. If they are not asking yet, don’t worry, keep
surrendering, and they will.
Time to join God in the pursuit of His existence – to love
others. Welcome to the freedom he offers
to make this possible. The text that all
things are possible with Him, has never been more true, more real, or more
attainable. Surrender and find out what
it is I am talking about …
No comments:
Post a Comment