Spirituality 101: What does it mean to surrender to God?

November 9, 5:22 AMNew Thought ExaminerAlex Marcoux

Previous Next

4 comments Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the New Thought Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

Alex Marcoux on surrendering to God.
Sherri Seely

What does it mean to surrender to God? Since the launch of my spiritual journey, I’ve often heard the expression “Surrender to God.” Over the years, I’ve pondered its meaning as well as what we are supposed to surrender.

Surrendering is a pivotal part of our journey. At some point we have a choice, we can keep status quo, which certainly is the easier option or we can surrender. While status quo is easier, the rewards of surrendering make the journey worthwhile. When we surrender we trust and live the higher vision that Spirit has for each of us. In other words – when we surrender we live purposefully.

To surrender, you let go or release something that is very precious to you. What are you releasing? You are letting go of the ego. When doing so, you concurrently remember the divinity within. That’s right, you remember who you truly are and that you are absolutely divine and there is no separation between yourself and Spirit. Before you came to be in your present form, you knew Truth. One of your soul’s purposes is to remember who you truly are while living in this human dimension. To remember God is - therefore I AM.

The ego is what keeps us living in fear. It is the ego which fuels the illusion that we are separate from God. It tells us we aren’t perfect the way we are, we don’t have enough money, our house isn’t in the right neighborhood, or we should have a better job. When we truly surrender, and let go, we release the fear, the anticipation, and the expectation.

We would like to think that once we release the ego it’s gone and won’t come back, but the ego never really leaves us. It never dies though it may lay dormant for long periods of time. Then out of nowhere, when its least expected, the ego can rear its ugly head. When I catch myself thinking I should be in a better place in my life, I realize it’s time to go within and I do a visualization exercise. In meditation I imagine seeing myself, along with a smaller version of me wearing a t-shirt boasting the letters E G O. In my visualization I see my EGO-self competing for attention. Instead of ignoring my EGO -self, I gently pick it up, and with love and kindness I set my EGO-self aside. I thank it for being with me on my journey, I tell it, “It’s your time to rest, retire, and recede.”

It’s the ego which creates our need to compete. When the ego is tamed we recognize we have available to us all the resources of Spirit. We can draw upon God’s help anytime to create a more interesting, more successful, more purposeful, and more joyous tapestry in our life. By holding onto our ego, we limit our life to our own thoughts and expectations, through the Law of Attraction. Why limit ourselves?

In “Living the Eternal Way,” Ellen Grace O’Brian writes, “A healthy ego is needed to let go, to turn the attention to the higher Self, and to become willing to serve.” A fragile ego will stop you from surrendering and resist serving your purpose. An unstable ego feeds on the drama, it needs to compete, and it reminds you that things can be better.  So oddly, a healthy ego is one of the keys to releasing it.

What can we do to tame of the ego? Foster the development of spiritual virtues such as love, compassion and forgiveness. Meditation and prayer build upon the foundation of our spiritual core. The more we anchor our spiritual life, and become spiritually engaged, the less distracted we’ll become by ego driven desire.

When we identify as human beings, we become distracted by human desires to achieve a certain status in life. When we identify as spiritual beings having a human experience, we realize that human desires are insignificant to the rewards of serving our purpose in life. We also realize that desires can be achieved through mastering spiritual principles.

What does it mean to surrender to God? It means to surrender the ego, to remember who we are – that we’re spiritual beings, and to trust that Spirit will guide us to live more joyous lives.

Join me this week by affirming,

God is. I AM.
I step aside - and let it be.
Knowing all is well - within and around me.

Namaste.

For more information visit www.AlexMarcoux.com, or follow me on Twitter, Facebook, or subscribe to receive my articles by email.