Surrender

Surrender. It’s the keyword for anyone on the path to enlightenment, ascension or peace. Surrender. Simple word. According to Merriam-Webster – the definition of “surrender” includes “to yield to the power, control or possesion of another upon compulsion or demand”. Perhaps that is where the issue with the word comes from, it implies that you lost. That you were overcome. That you waved the white flag in defeat. Napoleon Bonaparte. Bin Laden. You lost the war. Perhaps you did. But what you won, is so, so much more than you could ever possibly imagine, until you try it.

The war you lost, was simply losing struggle and overthinking. No great loss at all. What you won, was the ultimate freedom.
It also has some very “godly”, “religious”, dare I say “cult-like” associations, and so as a word, it can be seen in a very negative light. I get that. It can also seem to be very impractical. Surrender is all good and well, as long as
someone is paying the bills, turning the lights out at night and feeding the dog. “Who, exactly, is going to do all of that?” I hear you say…..the short
answer is you are. I am. The same people who always did those things will still do them.
The other thing I hear often, is “but what if I don’t like it?”, what if it’s not what I want? What if I have to live under a bridge, or in…….Wisconsin?? I
hate the cold, I can’t do that!! I’ve even had one notable person tell me thatshe has every plan to “ascend” and zero plans for “surrender”. She will do it on her terms or not at all. The fear and control in that statement is palpable, and I’m sure it’s familiar to most of us. After all, we’ve been socially conditioned over many years to take control, to manage our lives, to plan for our goals, to create structure and purpose and outlines. It’s a “normal” approach. It’s also all about fear. And control. And Lack. That is not a place of surrender. At all. It’s a place of overthinking, anxiety and struggle.
A Course in Miracles defines a “Miracle”, as a shift in perception, from fear to love. A thought process that rejects lack and acknowledges peace, security, abundance. All is well in my world, is a key affirmation that reflects the miracle state.
What if you no longer had to worry about where you lived so much, as to how you lived? What if you knew, without fail, that you have, and are, enough.

That whatever you do, where ever you go, whomever you speak with – you are exactly where you need to be, doing exactly what you need to do, at all times. What if you could let go of the fear, the anxiety, the depression around the constant quest for more, bigger, better, to know “why?”…..what if you could just “be”?
This is where surrender comes in. It does require some faith. Another word with some potentially negative connotations. I use the word in the context of “universal faith”, an unwavering knowledge that you are, and will be, OK.
That you have everything that you need, and always will. That no one can attack you, and there is no need for defense. That your being is love, that fear has no place in you, and that you can finally, finally, breath and relax knowing very simply, that all is well in your world.
THAT – is surrender. That complete faith that you, as a being, are aligned with the universe, source, God (whatever you would like to call it), in a way that is true, whole and one. Take a moment to allow your mind and body to slip into surrender. Try it on for size. Breath there for a moment, in that place where all is well, and you need to worry about nothing. Stay there for a while.
Now don’t be concerned, if you jumped out of that place quickly and went running back to the “but that can’t be right, what if I lose my job, how do I pay the rent” type thinking. That is also normal, fear-based, anxiety-inducing thinking, and it’s normal.
The purpose of this note is to demonstrate that there is another way, there is another way of being that is aligned, centered, calm and clear. Beyond that, this is the state in which you can truly live an inspired life. A state in which you can act, knowing without a doubt, that you are acting from a base of love, and in a way that can only help to heal the world and you along with it.
Unless and until you are in this place, of surrender, of “oneness”, of ultimate health and service, you are not in a place to serve yourself, your family, or the world. I know it seems counterintuitive to those of us with A Type personalities and big plans, but here is the thing, our plans are simply our way of holding our connection with spirit at bay and rejecting our true path.
They are nothing more than a manifestation of fear and control.
We have many ways of rejecting oneness – insisting that romantic love is our way to fulfillment, insisting that a major career is essential to our
wellbeing, insisting that the seeking that we are doing is helping us and we must read more books, when all these things do – is separate us from our inner being, and our true way of being. That of being in alignment, and
acting from love, and rejecting fear. Of fulfilling our purpose.

So how do you get there? First, you decide you’re “all in”. Or that will be decided for you. You can choose – if you don’t jump in voluntarily, you’ll be pushed into a trauma phase, from where you have no choice but to surrender. Even then, you may waltz in and out of surrender for a time, while your ego does battle with your spirit, and that is OK too. I did that
myself. I thought I knew better…..but do just allow yourself to try “surrender” on for size now and then. The more time you get to spend in surrender, the more comfortable you will become in this space. The more you will choose love over fear. Can you ascend without surrender? No. Whilst ever your ego is in control, you’re staying right where you are. Thrashing around in the matrix.
There is one simple thing you can do to help yourself along this path – one simple prayer or question to start each day, and repeat throughout the day if you need to and that is simply this: “Where would you have me go, what would you have me say, and to whom?”
That’s it. Go from there. Be still enough to hear the guidance you receive.
Follow it knowing without a doubt that you are in the flow, and in your purpose.
You can do more, obviously. A daily meditation practice, journaling, prayer, spiritual counseling – all are building blocks. Or you can just throw your hands in the air and be DONE with the struggle. In hindsight, I know which one I’d choose. I also know why I didn’t for so long. But trust me, put a toe in the water….try it on. Surrender is a beautiful place. A place of ultimate freedom. Only real things grow here. Nothing real can be threatened. All is well.