Surrender to God’s Plan

Surrender to God’s Plan

Sometimes we are called to surrender our loved ones to God’s plan for him to work in their lives. This surrender may be difficult. Especially when God’s plan may not seem like the best plan to us. Have you ever considered that?

In my post last month, I mentioned two Marys. Christ’s mother and Mary Magdalene. Two women who surrendered their plans to God’s plan in humble obedience. As I meditated on the Easter message of Jesus’ sacrifice last month, I considered a plethora of things. One of the things I considered was surrendering to God’s plan for our loved ones.

This surrendering is something God has placed in my life and on my heart for a while now. Often times, as parents, we might be hesitant to surrender to God’s perfect plan for our children’s lives.

When that happens, we need to remember that although we love our children deeply, God loves them more. Abraham and Isaac come to mind when I consider this.

Obedient Surrender May Cause Distress

Jesus’ great love for us, and his obedience to the will of his Father, caused him great agony and suffering. He endured God’s cup of wrath on his perfect sinless body. All so we, in our sinfulness, wouldn’t have to.

God allowed his blessed son to endure the unimaginable. He gave Jesus up to the cross when that probably did not seem like the best plan to his disciples. But thanks be to God for the sacrifice and resurrection!

In thinking of Jesus, our Sacrificial Passover Lamb who saves those covered by his blood, I thought of the Israelites in Egypt.

I thought about that first Passover when the Passover lamb’s blood spared those under it as the Death Angel passed over their homes.

Jochebed Surrendered to God’s Plan

As is my way, I followed those thoughts and dug deeper into Scripture. That led me to Jochebed, Moses’ mother. Jochebed knew God had a plan for his people, but she didn’t know what that plan was exactly. She had no way of knowing how far into the future it would be before God’s plan for her son would be revealed.

After Moses was born, I am positive it caused his mother great distress. Jochebed knew she couldn’t keep her growing infant hidden from Pharaoh’s edict to kill all Jewish babies forever.

What mother wouldn’t be distressed to put her 3-month-old baby boy in a papyrus basket, and place him among the reeds in the crocodile infested waters of the Nile River?

Even if it was in a desperate attempt to save him?

Yet, because Jochebed loved her son, she left him in God’s loving hands. She trusted God to do what she could not. Save her child.

Not an easy thing to do at times. And especially not at the time Moses was born. But God had a plan for Jochebed’s baby far beyond anything she could have ever imagined possible. She didn’t know God’s plan. She only knew she could trust her son to it.

Your Turn

It’s the same with us. We may not know what God has planned for our loved one. However, if we know God, we know we can trust him to do what is best.

Perhaps God is requiring us to do this so he can work in our loved one’s life to complete his perfect plan in and through them.

Maybe he’s asked us to place them in a papyrus basket and set the basket in a crocodile infested river.

It could be God has asked us to step aside, watch from the riverbank, and leave our child to his care.

Has God called you to surrender someone precious to his plan? Has he asked you to give them up to his loving heart? Is the process of surrendering causing you great distress?

If that is the case, like Jochebed, take heart. For no matter how difficult surrendering our child to God’s plan may be, there is peace in knowing he loves our children more than we ever could.

I wish you well.

Sandy