I Surrender

For true peace, we must surrender ourselves to Jesus

As we go through life, it can sometimes be easy to forget about God. We get wrapped up in our every day comings and goings, dealing with the issues right in front of us. Sometimes we even try to blunder through our problems on our own, with an "I don't need anyone's help" attitude. Until that one day...

In almost everyone's life, there comes a time when we feel overwhelmed. The "I don't need anyone's help" becomes "I can't do this on my own." What do we do? People take many approaches. Some decide to ignore the problem, thinking it will go away. Some decide that God is the problem (how can he let this happen to me?), and turn from God and look to power, pleasure, money or fame as a way to satisfy themselves. However, some of us turn to God. It is these times, when we feel powerless, that we give ourselves to God - knowing that he is the only one to get us through.

The song "I Surrender" by Hillsong United expresses these feelings (lyrics here). The lyrics have psalm-like qualities in their structure and message. It even begins with a show of humility and submission to the will of God: "Here I am down on my knees again. I surrender." Broken and shattered, there is the recognition that salvation comes from Jesus alone. He is with us and will be with us always. We just have to call on him.

As the song progresses, you can hear the desperation, pain, and desire in the lyrics: "I am here, Lord. Draw me close to you, close to peace and true joy. Fill my soul with your grace. Have mercy on me, a sinner! I hunger and thirst for your saving food and your quenching water of life. This is no half-hearted request. I've opened my arms, and I cry for you. Hear my voice." Remember, "hear my voice" is a frequent plea in the psalms.

With the request so emphatic, so urgent, the hoped for response is not to be lukewarm, but powerful. Like a rushing wind. Like a mighty storm. "Jesus fill me with your peace and love. Just your breath, your word, is necessary. Your father brought forth all things with his Word - let there be light. You gave the Apostles the Holy Spirit with your breath (Jn. 20:22). Please do the same for me."

The lyrics of this song are so simple, like the words of the psalms. But the message is so powerful, again like the words of the songs. This is a song one can listen to and sing when one is crying for the love of Jesus and desperately reaching out to Him. But we can listen to it other times, to remind us that we should always be reaching out to Jesus like this, asking him to fill our souls with his love.

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A blog dedicated to understanding Christian rock