I guess that is where Catholicism diverges from other Christian sects.  We dont surrender.  We are called to perform as Jesus did.  But on our own free volition.  I respect those that Surrender.  I guess I just have a problem with the terminology.

I guess that is where Catholicism diverges from other Christian sects. We dont surrender. We are called to perform as Jesus did. But on our own free volition. I respect those that Surrender. I guess I just have a problem with the terminology..

Here's a good summary of what it means to “surrender to God”, taken from a book called ‘Surrender to Love’, by fundie Christian David G. Benner:

“Despite the unpopularity of the notion, surrender plays a crucial role in the spiritual journey as understood by most major religions and spiritual traditions. Far from being a sign of weakness, only surrender to something or some bigger than us is sufficiently strong to free us from the prison of our egocentricity. Only surrender is powerful enough to overcome our isolation and alienation.”

“Christians often focus on obedience more than surrender. But while the two concepts are closely related, they differ in important ways. Surrender is foundational to Christian spirituality and is the soil out of which obedience should grow. Christ does not simply want our compliance. He wants our heart. He wants our love and he offers us his. He invites us to surrender to His love. Christianity puts surrender to love right at the core of the spiritual journey. Christ-following is saying yes to God’s affirming yes! to us. The Christian God comes to us as love, in love, for love. In spite of the trivializing influence of romantic and sentimental views of love in Western culture, love is the strongest force in the universe. Gravity may hold planets in order and nuclear force may hold the atom together, but only love has the power to transform persons. Only love can soften a hard heart. Only love can free us from the tyrannizing effects of fear.”

“There is nothing more important in life than learning to love and be loved. Jesus elevated love as the goal of spiritual transformation. Surrender is as much a part of genuine love as it is a part of authentic spirituality. Love speaks to the depths of our soul, where we year for release from our isolation and long for the belonging that will assure us we are at last home. Love speaks the language of the soul as it awakens our hunger for relationship and connection. Love is the glue of connection. Love is the source of the deepest wellsprings of human vitality. Love is the only hope for overcoming our isolation. Love invites surrender and offers the intimacy and deep connection for which we long. Surrender, love and spirituality are the big themes of life. In spite of the messages of Western culture, personal fulfilment lies in connection, not autonomy. Spirituality is the discovery of the fundamental connection that exists between us and God – a connection that then properly aligns us to others, the world and our deepest self. Love is the welcome that tells us that this is where we truly belong, the assurance that we have at last found our place.”

The world is full of people who are disenchanted with Christianity for one reason or another. Most commonly, it is because Christianity, or more specifically, Christians, "didn't deliver" for them in a time of real need The problem is that we as Christians are not surrendered to God in a way that would allow Him to accomplish His will through us

I think that when Christians fail to deliver to a person in need, God often finds ways to deliver Himself to the person in need, as long as he or she is ready or willing to receive. The following is taken from another book, which describes what it means to surrender to God on our own accord,


“A certain amount of desperation is sometimes necessary before we’re ready for God. When it comes to spiritual surrender, we sometimes don’t get serious, not really, until we’re down on our knees completely. The mess can get so thick that all the king’s horses and all the king’s men simply can’t put us together again. The adult inside us can be in a maniacal rage, the innocent child pinned against a wall. We fall apart.

“Nervous breakdowns can be highly underrated methods of spiritual transformation. They certainly get our attention. I have seen people have little mini-breakdowns year after year, each time stopping just short of getting the point. I think I was lucky to get mine over with in one fell swoop. The things I learned here, I will not forget. As painful as this experience was, I now see it as an important, perhaps necessary step in my breakthrough to a happier life. For one thing, I was profoundly humbled. I saw very clearly that, ‘of myself, I am nothing’. Until this happens, you keep trying all your old tricks, the ones that never did work but that you keep thinking might work this time. Once you’ve had enough and you can’t do it anymore, you consider the possibility that there might be a better way. That’s when your head cracks open and God comes in.

"I had heard it said that a power greater that I could do for me what I couldn’t do myself. And at my moment of surrender, there was nothing else to do and there was no else to call. My fear finally became so great, that I wasn’t too hip to say, 'God, Please help me.'

"Until your knees hit the floor, you’re just playing at life, and on some level you’re scared because you know you’re just playing. The moment of surrender is not when life is over. It’s when it begins.

“Not that that moment of eureka – that calling out to God – is it, and it’s all Paradise from then on. You’ve simply started the climb. But you know you’re not running around in circles at the bottom of the mountain anymore, never really getting anywhere, dreaming of the top and having no idea how to get there. For many people, things have to get very bad before there’s a shift. When you truly bottom out, there comes an exhilarating release. You recognise there’s a power in the universe bigger than you are, who can do for you what you can’t do for yourself. All of a sudden, your last resort sounds like a very good idea. How ironic. You spend your whole life resisting the notion that there’s someone out there smarter than you are, and then all of a sudden you’re so relieved to know it’s true. All of a sudden, you’re not too proud to ask for help. That’s what it means to surrender to God.”

The world is full of people who are disenchanted with Christianity for one reason or another. Most commonly, it is because Christianity, or more specifically, Christians, "didn't deliver" for them in a time of real need.

My need for separation came about because of the hypocrisy I saw. I saw people putting themselves up on pedestals when their behaviour was no better than those they thought somehow inferior to themselves - and was sometimes WORSE than. Rather than stay and be a hypocrite, I chose to leave - and thus began my journey. So far, it's led me through Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism, Gonsticism, Judaism....and now that I know more about other faiths and belief systems I can understand and appreciate Christianity even more. I think that I'm a better person for it; unfortunately some people don't agree with me.

There are always going to be people you don't get along with, Gid. All I can tell you is that if what you're doing feels right to you and you have a clear conscience about it....then do it.

I think that when Christians fail to deliver to a person in need, God often finds ways to deliver Himself to the person in need, as long as he or she is ready or willing to receive.

That doesn't excuse us from action in service to God. Ever. Matthew 25:31-46 makes it pretty clear what God expects from us in ministry.

There are always going to be people you don't get along with, Gid. All I can tell you is that if what you're doing feels right to you and you have a clear conscience about it....then do it.

Oh, I don't mind not getting along with people, dharma. But when I see churches full of people who are missing the point, my heart aches for them, and I'm forced to ask myself, is it they who are missing the point, or is it me? When I search the scriptures and find my concerns to be well founded in scripture, it makes the pain even greater.

I firmly believe the Gospel message to be the message people NEED to hear today. But too many of them are not getting it. Either they're not getting past the front door (metaphorically speaking, not physically speaking, at least I hope) because people have already judged them by the clothes they wear or by the discernible bulge of a cigarette pack in their front pocket or some other superficial sign, or the message is lost in a series of impassioned pleas for money for this ministry, that ministry, or the building fund.

One of my favorite sayings comes from a U2 song where the statement is made: "the God I believe in isn't short of cash!" While I believe in and understand the reasons for tithing, it is painful to know that that offering plate is keeping many from hearing the Gospel. Wouldn't it be saner to put the offering plate away and exhort people to give rather than hold the plate out in front of them as a shakedown?

Too many ministries are based on what we can get, rather than what we can give. A ministry should be based on giving, not getting.

But when I see churches full of people who are missing the point, my heart aches for them, and I'm forced to ask myself, is it they who are missing the point, or is it me?

Oh, I know EXACTLY what you're talking about. I used to worry that I wasn't 'getting' the message, that they were all right and that I must be stupid because I wasn't understanding it the same way they were. However....I studied and studied and prayed, and reached a point where I just KNEW in my heart that I was getting the right message - it's hard to explain, but I think that you'll understand what I'm talking about.

It still happens, even now.

That doesn't excuse us from action in service to God. Ever. Matthew 25:31-46 makes it pretty clear what God expects from us in ministry.

You're right Gideon. I was talking about even when we try, we can fail. In such cases, God can step in and can do a good 'transformation job' within another's heart and mind. That doesn't excuse from trying ourself though

You're right Gideon. I was talking about even when we try, we can fail. In such cases, God can step in and can do a good 'transformation job' within another's heart and mind. That doesn't excuse from trying ourself though

You are right. God can work entirely without us. One wonders, though, in the parable of the Good Samaritan, how many would have passed by reasoning that God would send someone else rather than taking personal action.

Good point Gideon,