THE ACT OF GIVING UP CONTROL TO JESUS IS ACTUALLY THE BEGINNING OF FREEDOM!
Trust in the lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT
You are good and do only good; teach me your decrees. Psalms 119:68 NIV
Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. James 4:8 NLT
The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Psalms 37:23 NLT
For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:9 NLT
WHAT YOU HOLD ONTO BECOMES YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO MAINTAIN, BUT WHAT YOU SURRENDER TO GOD HE BARES.
Then Jesus said, Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28 NLT
Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you 1 Peter 5:7 NLT
3 AREAS WE MUST SURRENDER
1. MATERIALISM
You say, ‘I am rich. I have everything I want. I don’t need a thing!’ And you don’t realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. Revelation 3:17 NLT
The seed that fell among the thorns represents those who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life and the lure of wealth, so no fruit is produced. Matthew 13:22 NLT
ASK YOURSELF IF THERE IS ANYTHING IN YOUR LIFE YOU WOULD’NT GIVE UP IF GOD ASKED YOU TO. THEN ASK WHY?
Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. 1 Timothy 6:17 NLT
ACTION STEP: EVALUATE THE GIVING IN YOUR LIFE.
Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine. Proverbs 3:9-10 ESV
Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.
“No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.
Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. Matthew 6:21,24,33 NLT
And if your wealth increases, don’t make it the center of your life. Psalms 62:10 NLT
“Don’t set your mind on things you don’t possess as if they were yours, but count the blessings you actually possess and think how much you would desire them if they weren’t already yours.” -Marcus Aurelius
2. RELATIONSHIPS
If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. Luke 14:26 NLT
For the believing wife brings holiness to her marriage, and the believing husband brings holiness to his marriage….Don’t you wives realize that your husbands might be saved because of you? And don’t you husbands realize that your wives might be saved because of you? 1 Corinthians 7:14;16 NLT
even though God had told him, “Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted.” Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. Hebrews 11:18-19 NLT
ACTION STEP: EVALUATE IF THERE IS A RELATIONSHIP THAT HAS COME BETWEEN YOU AND GOD.
3. MYSELF
This vision is for a future time. It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled. If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed. Habakkuk 2:3 NLT
ACTION STEP: EVALUATE WHETHER YOU THINK YOUR WAYS ARE BETTER THAN HIS.
Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. Matthew 6:33 NLT