​In his classic devotional, My Utmost For His Highest, Oswald Chambers writes these words of insightful wisdom.
“Surrender is not the surrender of the external life, but of the will: when that is done all is done. There are very few crises in life; the great crisis is surrender of the will. God never crushes a man’s will into surrender; He never beseeches him. He waits until the man yields up his will to Him. That battle never needs to be refought.”
Chambers hit the proverbial nail on the head regarding surrender: surrender for Christians is yielding our will to God.
You and I wrestle and struggle to surrender our personal life, family, career, dreams, material possessions, relationships and ministry to God.
News bulletin: the Lord does not want that stuff. HE WANTS US. ALL OF US. When He has us, when we yield to His will, everything else falls into place.
Surrender sets you and me free from ourselves. Surrender is about deliverance, devotion and death. Deliverance from selfishness, the flesh, the devil and the world. Devotion and obedience to the Lordship of Christ. Death to me and abundant, eternal life in Him.
Surrendering my will to God’s will means doing His will His way.
Why wouldn’t you and I desire to yield and surrender our will to God? Romans 12:2 states that “the will of God is good, acceptable and perfect.” I know at times Steve’s will is not good, is unacceptable, and far from perfect. Why in the world would I want to hold on to my will when God’s will is everything I desire and need? Worth thinking about, huh?
Biblical surrender is a complete, unconditional surrender of our will to God’s will.
Matthew 26:36-46 records Jesus monumental spiritual battle in the Garden of Gethsemane. Facing the imminent, foreboding prospect of death on a cruel Roman cross, God’s only Son yielded His will to the Father’s will. Under intense, unrelenting pressure, sweating drops of blood, He said three times “Not My will, but Your will be done.”  
Jesus fully surrendered His life to fulfill the will of the Father that He would be the Savior of the world. He settled it that His death was not about His will but God’s will.
I have often tried during my five decades as a Christian to understand what Jesus did in the Garden. In order to withstand and overcome the tortuous death awaiting Him on Mount Calvary, Jesus died to self in the Garden before He died on the Cross.
Jesus’ mission in coming to earth was to do the will of the Father (John 17:1-5).
“Not My will, but Your will be done” was not about Jesus. It was about the Father. It was about salvation for you and me through Christ’s voluntary, sacrificial death for the forgiveness of our sins. He loved you and me enough to give up His rights to Himself.
So, what does Jesus’ surrender of His will have to do with you and me? Everything.
The Apostle Paul reminds us “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body.” I Corinthians 6:19-20.
The “price” Jesus paid for you and me was His priceless, precious life blood. Once again Jesus’ sacrifice was not about Him. It was about providing salvation for you and me. Jesus surrendered Himself to the Father and a cross so you and I could be saved from sin.
I believe God’s will for me is to surrender myself to Him and His will so I can work out the salvation that God has worked in me.
“So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only; but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:12-13).
Chambers is right. The great crisis of life is surrender of our will. God waits until we yield our will to Him. When we do, everything else falls into place!
You and I have everything to gain when we surrender to God’s will and everything to lose when we choose not to.
Your will or God’s will? The choice is up to you.
Christian Hymn “I Surrender All.”
“All to Jesus, I surrender, Lord, I give myself to Thee.
Fill me with Thy love and power, Let Thy blessing fall on me.
I surrender all, I surrender all. All to Thee my blessed Savior, I surrender all.”
“I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me.” Galatians 2:20
A Word For Your Week: Surrender to God’s will sets us free!

​Fantasy is not reality.
Fantasy is what I imagine something to be. Fantasy is never grounded in reality. On the contrary, for most people, fantasy is an escape from reality. If I fantasize about something or someone, I excuse myself from dealing with the realities of my life.
Movies produced by unholy Hollywood and even by some religious filmmakers often depict God in ways that the Bible does not. Sadly, many people have fantasy faith…. faith that fantasizes about who we think God is and how He should act and treat us.
Fantasy faith is about formulas, rituals, religious practices and personal experiences that attempt to sway God to do our bidding
Fantasy faith is fickle at best, patently false at the worst.  It looks like this:  I believe in and trust God when things are going well, but I doubt and distrust God when things are not going so well.
Fantasy never delivers what it promises. Fantasy is a false view of life. Fantasy is fake. Fantasy is a lie.
Real Facts About Biblical And Fantasy Faith.

1. Faith in Jesus Christ can handle reality.
2. Fantasy faith is unstable. Unreliable. It comes and goes. Biblical faith is solid, stable and always believes that God is who He says He is and does what He says He will do.
3. Fantasy faith can cause people to make poor decisions with negative consequences.
4. Biblical y faith faces life with unshakable confidence that God is with us, for us and working on our behalf in all situations. 
5. Faith-based reality assures believes in Christ of victory over life’s changing circumstances.
6. Fantasy faith is a feeble “I hope so.” Biblical faith is a strong “I know so.”
7. Fantasy faith is based on the sinking sand of feelings. Biblical faith is based on the immovable bedrock of Jesus Christ.
8. Fantasy faith denies the facts of reality. Biblical faith meets life’s challenges head on with trust in the Lord.
9. Biblical faith produces peace and certainty. Fantasy faith produces anxiety and uncertainty.
10. Walking by faith (Biblical), not by sight (fantasy faith) is the only way to live successfully through the ups, downs and all arounds of life.    

Christian faith is not founded on feelings, fiction or fantasy.
Faith in the God of the Bible is not about a bargaining chip, a roll of the dice, a lottery ticket or what is “trending” in a wayward culture.  
Biblical faith is rooted and grounded on God’s faithfulness to His Word revealed in the Bible. Many people who I counsel express faith, but often their faith does not help them overcome the realities they are facing. They have a poor understanding about what Biblical faith looks like.   
Hebrews 12 records the Hall of Fame of Faith heroes. True stories of real people, living real life, facing real challenges and achieving real victories by trusting in the Lord. Each faith hero is introduced by the phrase “By faith…”
Meet Abraham and Sarah. Genesis 12-25, Romans 4:16-22 and Hebrews 11:8-11 record their faith journey. Read for yourself the realities they faced and how faith in God and obedience to His Word they fulfilled God’s will for their lives.
Cliff Note version. Abraham and Sarah were promised a son. Initially they laughed (you and I would have had a good laugh too) because they were very old, way past baby making years! Romans 4:19-22 states:
“As it is written “A father of many nations have I made you.” in the sight of Him whom he believed, even God, who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist. In hope against hope, he believed in order that he might become a father of many nations, according to that which has been spoken “So shall your descendants be.”
And without becoming weak in faith, he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead, since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah’s womb; yet with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief, but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully assured that what He had promised He was also able to perform. Therefore, also it was accounted to him as righteousness.”
Abraham and Sarah patiently and expectantly waited in faith for twenty years. Isaac was born. God’s promise was kept. Abraham and Sarah’s faith was strong, intact, giving glory to God in the process.
No fantasy faith for Abraham and Sarah. Just plain old, flat out, no holds barred, real, biblical faith that believed in God’s promise to them.  
My friend, is your faith based on fantasy or the Bible?
Biblical faith that is real faith that overcomes real challenges looks to a real life crucified, risen Savior and the power of the Holy Spirit to meet every need according to God’s promises.  
Fantasy or biblical faith, you choose.
“How blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob; whose hope is in the Lord his God; who made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them; WHO KEEPS FAITH FOREVER.’ Psalm 146:5-6
“And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that he is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6
A Word For Your Week: Base your faith on the real, eternal truth found in the Bible.

​When I woke up this morning the following scripture from the Bible was the first thought on my mind.
“And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.”  
I started my day with the truth that Jesus is Lord.
Sadly, and to our detriment, human hero worship has gone crazy in our culture.  
Men and women are propped up and falsely promoted as the “messiahs” that have come to save us. Sorry folks. None of our gifted athletes, movie and music celebrities, media personalities, “educated” elitists, prominent scientists, political figures, business barons or popular ministry leaders voluntarily died on a cross and rose from the dead to save us from our sins. In addition to you and me, all the above need the Messiah the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Apostle Paul writes in Philippians 2:8-10 about the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
“And being found in appearance as a man, He (Jesus) humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, also God highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow., of those who are in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.”
Paul made some astounding statements about Jesus.

1. God highly exalted Him because He voluntarily died on a cross for our sins.
2. God declared Jesus’ name above every name that would ever be named. His name is the name!
3. At the name of Jesus every knee of every created creature will bow before Him.
4. Every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

Note: Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. Every means every created creature, every human created in God’s image. Every includes you and me.
Jesus, and Jesus alone, is worthy of our worship (bended knee and confession of His Lordship) because He voluntarily sacrificed Himself on the Cross and rose from the dead to save us from sin, death and the grave. Eternal life is His gift to all who believe in His Lordship. Jesus has promised to come back to take everyone who calls Him Lord to heaven. 

• Jesus is Lord because of His great love for you and me.  

Living in our day where humans have failed miserably to lead people according to the truth, wisdom and moral principles revealed in God’s Word, maybe we should look to God, humble ourselves and confess that His Son Jesus Christ is Lord!
If Jesus is Lord of our life………

• You and I will sincerely and wholeheartedly receive Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior.
• You and I will joyfully surrender every area of our life to Him.  
• You and I will live for His honor and glory, not ours or other persons.
• You and I will obey the Word of God in the Bible. Jesus said “If you love Me, obey Me.” (John 15:10).
• You and I will not fear what any person can do to us. No man or woman can usurp the Lordship of Christ. Who could ever knock Jesus off His heavenly throne?
• You and I will walk by faith in peace and confidence in our Lord and Savior.
• You and I will look forward with great expectation and anticipation for Christ’s return.
• You and I will share the Good News that Jesus is Lord with people who are spiritually lost.

Someone has said “If Jesus is not Lord of all, He is not Lord at all.”
Is there any area of your life where Jesus is not Lord? Anything you have withheld from Him   that you refuse to let go control of and release it to Jesus? Would those who know you best say that Jesus is indeed Lord of your life?
Now or later, you will bow your knee and confess with your tongue that Jesus is Lord. I believe it is better to do it now than wait for a day when judgment comes and Jesus might say “I never knew you. Depart from My presence.” (Matthew 7:23).  
One of my all-time favorite worship choruses goes like this.
“He is Lord, He is Lord, He has risen from the dead and He is Lord.
Every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.”
“And on His (Jesus’) robe and on His thigh He has a name written “KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.” Revelation 19:16
A Word For Your Week: JESUS IS LORD. Is He your Lord and Savior?

​Imagine with me for a moment.
 
You are near the end of your earthly life and have been taken to stand before the President of the United States. Your lifelong enemies have ridiculed your faith in Jesus Christ, slandered your good name, and labored relentlessly and ruthlessly to ruin your reputation. You have been brought before the most powerful person in the country to defend your belief and behavior as a Christian.
 
What would you do? How would you handle yourself? What would you say? What would the news media report about you on their bottom of the hour breaking news alert?
 
Something to think about, huh? While we are thinking, our word for this week reveals to us what the Apostle Paul did when he was dragged in chains before the Roman King Agrippa to give account of his Christian faith.
 
“And so, having obtained help from God, I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, stating nothing but what the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place; that the Christ was to suffer, and that by reason of His resurrection from the dead He should be the first to proclaim light both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.”  Acts 26:22-23
 
Paul stood tall, testifying boldly about his personal belief in the Lord Jesus Christ.
 
Read his whole testimony in Acts 26. What stands out to me is that Paul not only stood before King Agrippa, but he stood up to him. He stood boldly and unashamedly as a courageous, confident Christian who almost persuaded Agrippa to become a believer in Christ (Acts 26:26-29).
 
Note Paul says that “to small and great” he gave witness of his faith in Christ. No matter if the crowd was large or small; the person(s) important or unimportant according to the world, Paul stood up and spoke boldly about Jesus.
 
Under immense personal pressure from Jewish religious zealots and powerful Roman governing authorities, Paul could have shrunk back in silence. He could have compromised his convictions. Or he could have denied his faith. He did none of these things. On the contrary, Paul stood up boldly for what he believed in when it was neither popular nor personally profitable to do so.
 
Where did Paul get his boldness? Our verse says he stood boldly with God’s help. Look what he writes in II Timothy 4:16-18.
 
“At my first defense, no one supported (stood) with me, but all deserted me; may it not be counted against them. BUT THE LORD STOOD WITH ME AND STRENGTHENED ME; in order that through me the proclamation might be fully accomplished, and that all the Gentiles might hear, and I was delivered out of the lion’s mouth. The Lord will deliver me from every evil deed and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.”
           
Don’t you love what Paul says? His words get my spiritual motor running! Though no man stood with Paul, God did. The Lord supported, strengthened and delivered Paul from men because Paul stood boldly for God before men.
 
A man can be bold when he knows God is standing by his side.
 
I believe bold belief produces bold behavior. If ever there was a time for Christians to be bold about their belief, it is now.
 
Our sad, sin-sick, spiritually, morally lost world needs to hear good news from bold believers who trust Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Courageous Christians need to heed God’s call to stand against the high tide of unbelief washing over our culture, country and world. Falsehood, deception, and outright lies run rampant and unchallenged in the daily chatter of our fellow countrymen. Satan has pulled out all the stops in his bold, bullying tactics to steal the souls of men and women.
 
 Christian boldness is the need of this critical hour in history.
 
But barriers to boldness keep too many Christians from standing up for Christ in our society. Some of these barriers include:
           

• Fear of going against the grain
• Fear of being labeled politically incorrect 
• Unwilling to suffer adverse consequences
• Desire for man’s approval over God’s approval
• Try to avoid Satan’s attack against bold believers
• Ignorance of what we believe and why we believe it
• Complacency and apathy in the body of Christ
• Silent faith is the religiously correct position

 
The enemy of our souls and his evil forces are bold, so why aren’t God’s people as bold, if not bolder? I John 4:4 declares “Greater is He (Jesus Christ) that is in us, than he (Satan) who is in the world.”  If the greater One is in us, shouldn’t we be the boldest?
 
Boldness begins and ends with our relationship with God. 
 
Boldness comes from closeness to the Savior who was bold on our behalf when He suffered for us on the Cross and rose again from the dead. When we know Him, we can show Him to the world.
 
Christian faith isn’t for pansies. It’s for courageous men and women who are willing, out of love and devotion to God, to put everything on the line to stand up for their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
           
Fellow believer in Christ, I urge you and encourage you with all the passion in my heart: believe boldly, behave boldly. Pray for boldness. Pray for opportunities to be bold. And prepare to be bold when opportunities come.
 
Don’t two-step with your faith. Stand up boldly. Be counted for Christ. Someone you know needs to hear about Jesus from you, a bold believer.  
 
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and to the Greek.”                               Romans 1:16
 
“Therefore, do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, or of me His prisoner; but join with me in suffering for the gospel according to the power of God.”   II Timothy 2:8
 
“And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with BOLDNESS.”                                                                                                    Acts 4:31
 
A Word For Your Week: Be bold about what you believe.