Take My Life, and Let It Be (Living The Surrendered Life)

“Anyone who does not  give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.”  (Luke 14:33)

 

What does a surrendered life look like?  The answer is TOTAL SURRENDER.  Jesus said that  “anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. And  if anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters, even his own life cannot be my disciple.”  (Luke 14:26-27).

In 1874, Frances Ridley Havergal  who was just thirty-eight years old,  penned a hymn that has become a beloved treasure of the church.   Written as a prayer,  each line focuses on one dimension of  what it means to be fully surrendered to Christ:

Take My Life,  and Let It Be

Take  my life, and let it be. 

Consecrated, Lord, to Thee;

Take my hands, and let them move.

At the impulse of Thy love,

At the impulse of Thy love.

Take my feet, and let them be.

Swift and beautiful for Thee;

Take my voice, and let them sing,

Always, only, for my King,

Always only,  for my King.

Take my silver and my gold.

Not a mite would I withhold;

Take my moments and my days,

Let them flow in ceaseless praise,

Let them flow in ceaseless praise.

Take my will, and make it Thine. 

It shall be no longer mine;

Take my heart, it is Thine own;

It shall be Thy royal throne,

It shall be Thy royal throne.

Here are some questions for  us to answer: 

Have I consciously acknowledged Christ’s ownership of my life? 

Do I live with the conscious realization that all my time belongs to God?

Am I yielding the members (parts) of my body to God as instruments of righteousness?

Do the words that come out of my mouth reveal that my lips and tongue are fully surrendered to God?

Do I give generously,  sacrificially, and gladly to the Lord’s work and to others in need?

Am I wasting my mind on worldly knowledge or pursuits that do not have eternal spiritual value?

Do I consistently seek to know and to do the will of God in practical and daily matters of life?

Am I moody? Temperamental? Hard to please?

Do I enjoy and seek out the friendship of God as much as I do human friendships?

Have I surrenderd all that I am and all that I have to God?

God is asking us every part of our being.  He wants us to consecrate our life to Him:  our body...our tongue...our possessions...our mind...our will...our  affections....our relations and.... ourselves.

(From the book  “Living the Surrendered Life” preached by Mrs. Xenia Solidum  Foja during Joint Fellowship of Men, Women and Youth of Odiongan Baptist Church).