Don’t Give Up—Give In…to God
It was one of those mornings when everything seemed to be falling apart before breakfast. The alarm didn’t go off, your phone battery died overnight, you missed the bus, and to top it all off, your boss sent a “Can we talk?” message. In moments like that, we often scramble to fix everything ourselves—making a dozen phone calls, sending frantic texts, or working twice as hard to catch up. But sometimes, after all the hustling and sweating, we realise we can’t fix it. That’s usually the point where we throw our hands up and say, “God, please help me.”
What if we didn’t wait until we were at the end of ourselves? What if we started there, at the place of surrender?
Surrender isn’t resignation. It’s not a shrug of the shoulders saying, “Well, whatever happens, happens.” No. It’s intentionally leaving our battles to the One who never loses a fight. In the kingdom of God, surrender isn’t giving up; it’s giving to God. It’s not weakness; it’s wisdom. It’s recognising that your spiritual heritage is not a life of constant struggle but a life anchored in the power and presence of God.
Surrender Rooted in Scripture
Absolute dependence on God means refusing to lean on our own understanding but trusting His wisdom and leading, just as Proverbs 3:5–6 tells us:
“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.”
Philippians 4:13 says it plainly:
“I can do all things through Christ, which strengtheneth me.”
Notice it says through Christ, not through your job title, bank account, or social media following. True surrender is a lifestyle, a daily choice to put God in the driver’s seat, not just when you’re in a crisis, but even when life is smooth sailing.
Practising Surrender in Everyday Life
If you can trust God with what to eat, where to go, or which opportunity to take, you’ll be better prepared to trust Him with life-changing decisions like where to live, what career to pursue, or who to marry. Many heartbreaks and wrong turns in life happen when we leave God out of the picture.
Surrender also means obeying even when His instructions seem unorthodox. Abraham didn’t have GPS coordinates when God told him, “Go to the land I will show you” (Genesis 12:1). Yet, he obeyed. That’s surrender at its peak. Trusting the Guide without demanding to see the full map.
Lessons from Bishop David Oyedepo
Bishop David Oyedepo often says:
“Wherever God cannot take me, may I never get there. Whatever God cannot give me, may I never have it.”
These aren’t just poetic lines; they are covenant commitments to live fully dependent on God. In his book 15 Forces for Impactful Living, he writes, “God is either Lord of all or not Lord at all.” You can’t hand over your eternity to Him and still cling to your finances, relationships, or plans in fear. True surrender refuses partial lordship.
Surrender isn’t about losing control; it’s about putting control in the right hands. It’s knowing that the God who spoke the universe into being can handle your career, your family, your finances, and your future. As you learn to trust Him in the little things, your faith will grow strong enough to trust Him with the big ones.
So today, ask yourself: What am I still holding on to that God is asking me to let go of? The safest place you can be is in His hands.
