Day 10: The Heart of Worship

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"What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?"  Romans 6:15-16

We have been born into a culture with a competitive nature which feeds on 3 of the most common barriers.  Fear, Pride, Confusion. . .all part of the daily grind we face each and every day.  Most of us have been taught that winning is everything and to never give up.  We are taught to push ourselves harder, further, faster.  The word surrender indicated as a negative notion.  We are taught that surrendering makes you weak and defeated; but surrendering to God is the heart of worship.
Surrendering is not an easy road nor an excuse to be lazy.  It could be surrendering or sacrificing your life in suffering in order to change what needs to be changed.  If we are surrendering to fear, pride, and confusion more than likely one will feel like we are doing the opposite of what we feel like doing.  It could also be an unpopular and costly choice.  In today's society erring on the side of God will almost always be an unpopular choice.
I think my biggest barrier would have to be fear.  Fear has been a driving force in my mother's life, and I learned early on; it was part of life.  'Be afraid! Be very afraid!'  Of course this world houses a lot of fears but it does not have to drive or control your life.  At any moment driving, I could be hit.  At any moment, I could get cancer or other fatal disease.  At any moment, I could be lied to, cheated on, or stabbed.  If I constantly thought about these things, I would never leave the house.  Within the last 6 months, I have worked at giving my fear to God and surrendering the confusion that comes with my fear(s).  I have my days as I am still human, but I have realized how much easier it is to talk out these fears with God even if they do not go away.
It is time we all raise our white flags a little higher.  Let go of yourself.  Be free.  Society is going to expect the norm.  They want us to stay here for selfish reasons-anything out of the norm rocks their boat; so rock it!  Rock it for God's grace and glory.  The sacrifices we make for Him will be worth the ridicule and hopefully, other's will see they do not need to live in fear, pride or confusion any longer.  Your surrender is your freedom!

"What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?"  Romans 6:1-2

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