Words of Hope Daily Devotional
How to Surrender
Read: Philippians 4:4-9
Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. (v. 9)
It’s all well and good to sing “I surrender all.” But how do we actually do this? Over the next few days we will be focusing on what total surrender to Christ looks like in our everyday lives.
Let’s start with what it means to surrender our minds. There are many examples throughout the Bible of what this involves. Philippians 4:8 outlines for us things to focus our minds on: whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, or worthy of praise. Similarly, Colossians 3:2 tells us to set our minds “on things that are above.” The writer John Gill has said that unless our affections and thoughts are set on things above, those things “will never be sought after in a proper manner.”
In order to set our minds on things above and take every thought captive to Christ (see 2 Cor. 10:5) we must do two things. Positively, we must fill our minds with his Word. Meditating on Scripture and memorizing it is part of surrendering our minds to the Lord. Negatively, we must also carefully guard what we let into our minds.
What we spend most of our time watching, reading, listening to, and thinking about influences our actions, choices, and words. This is why surrendering our minds to Christ is essential in order to follow him with all our hearts.
As you pray, ask God to help you set your mind on things above.
About the Author
Jessica Heikoop was a writer and editor from Ontario, Canada. Beloved by her family and community, she died in 2013 at the age of 31.
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