Yielded and Still

Thursday, December 30, 2010, 8:44 a.m. – I woke this morning with one song after another playing in my mind. This song stayed in my mind as I got up to write:

Just a Closer Walk with Thee / Unknown

I am weak, but Thou art strong,
Jesus, keep me from all wrong,
I’ll be satisfied as long
As I walk, let me walk close to Thee.

When my feeble life is o’er,
Time for me will be no more,
Guide me gently, safely o’er
To Thy kingdom, dear Lord, to Thy shore.

Just a closer walk with Thee,
Grant it, Jesus, is my plea,
Daily walking close to Thee,
Let it be, dear Lord, let it be.

When I finished writing the title to this song, and I began to pray to the Lord, he brought yet another song to mind:

Have Thine Own Way, Lord / Adelaide A. Pollard, 1862-1934
George C. Stebbins, 1846-1945 / Tune: ADELAIDE, Meter: 54.54 D

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Thou art the potter, I am the clay.
Mold me and make me after Thy will,
While I am waiting, yielded and still.

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Search me and try me, Master, today!
Whiter than snow, Lord, wash me just now,
As in Thy presence humbly I bow.

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Wounded and weary, help me I pray!
Power, all power, surely is Thine!
Touch me and heal me, Savior divine!

Have Thine own way, Lord! Have Thine own way!
Hold o'er my being absolute sway.
Fill with Thy Spirit till all shall see
Christ only, always, living in me!

Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening. I read Luke 21:5-36:

Signs of the End of the Age
5 Some of his disciples were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God. But Jesus said, 6 “As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be thrown down.”
7 “Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”

8 He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. 9 When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.”

10 Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.

12 “But before all this, they will lay hands on you and persecute you. They will deliver you to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name. 13 This will result in your being witnesses to them. 14 But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. 15 For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict. 16 You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. 17 All men will hate you because of me. 18 But not a hair of your head will perish. 19 By standing firm you will gain life.

20 “When you see Jerusalem being surrounded by armies, you will know that its desolation is near. 21 Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those in the city get out, and let those in the country not enter the city. 22 For this is the time of punishment in fulfillment of all that has been written. 23 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! There will be great distress in the land and wrath against this people. 24 They will fall by the sword and will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

25 “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. 26 Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. 27 At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

29 He told them this parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees. 30 When they sprout leaves, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is near. 31 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that the kingdom of God is near.

32 “I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

34 “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. 35 For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. 36 Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man.”

My Understanding: I believe the Lord would have me focus this morning on the aspects of this Biblical passage and these two songs that have to do with the things we will experience in this life as believers in Jesus Christ, what Jesus Christ did and/or does for us, and what our response to him should be.

Our life experiences as believers in Jesus Christ

• Persecution and rejection

• Betrayal at the hands of those we love

• Weighed down by the cares of this life

• Temptation and/or giving in to sin, sin habits, sinful lifestyles, etc.

• Spiritual and/or emotional weakness and temptation to give in to the flesh

• Wounded and weary via circumstances of this life that weigh in on us

What Jesus Christ did and/or does for us

• He has given us His Words, which will never pass away - words to give us guidance, direction, instruction, encouragement, hope, and healing, etc.

• He is strong for us when we are weak, wounded and weary, if we rely on his strength and power within us and not on our own strength to overcome our flesh

• He keeps us from sinning when we place our faith and trust in Him and not in our flesh and we repent and choose to turn from our sin and to follow him

• He is the potter and we are the clay – he molds us and shapes us after his will if we are willing, yielded and still before him

• He cleanses us from all sin via his death on the cross and his resurrection in which he conquered death, Satan and sin – freeing us from the ultimate penalty of sin as well as setting us free from the control of and bondage to sin on a daily basis if we are willing and yielded to him

• He heals us physically, spiritually and emotionally when we turn to him in faith and obedience and we cooperate with him in what he wants to do in our hearts and lives

• He fills us with his Holy Spirit who is within us to give us guidance, direction, counsel, comfort, encouragement, conviction, reproof, etc.

What our response should be

• Watch out (be on the lookout) that we are not deceived by anything

• Use the troubles of this life as a springboard to grow closer to our Lord in fellowship with him, in walking in faith and obedience, and in being a witness for him

• Stand firm in our faith even in the face of persecution, rejection, betrayal, etc.

• Stand up and lift up our heads, i.e. don’t let the circumstances of this life weigh us down and keep us from obeying our Lord

• Be careful not to allow sin or sin habits to creep back into our lives and to give in to the flesh and fleshly appetites so that we obey them rather than obey God

• Be always on the watch and pray – don’t let your guard down – Satan knows our weak points and he will come after us in those areas, so we need to have our armor on all the time, we need to be prayerfully watchful so that we don’t fall to temptation

• We need to aggressively seek to listen to God’s voice within us, to obey what he says, to spend time with him daily in prayer and in his word, and to be sharing our faith with others so that we grow closer to our Lord daily

• We need to be yielded and still before our Lord to allow him to mold us and to make us after HIS will and not after our own wills

• We need to be willing to have the Lord search our hearts and to reveal to us any sins that need to be confessed and repented (turned from) of – to show us any weakness of mind, heart, and soul and to allow him to work his healing in our lives

• We need to put off the heart responses to our flesh and we need to put on the things of the Spirit so that we can be filled with God’s Holy Spirit so that Christ Jesus is who is seen in our lives as a testimony for him, instead of us revealing flesh-controlled lives

I Surrender All / Judson W. Van De Venter / Winfield S. Weeden
… Lo, we have left all, and have followed Thee. (Mark 10:28)

All to Jesus, I surrender;
All to Him I freely give;
I will ever love and trust Him,
In His presence daily live.

All to Jesus I surrender;
Humbly at His feet I bow,
Worldly pleasures all forsaken;
Take me, Jesus, take me now.

All to Jesus, I surrender;
Make me, Savior, wholly Thine;
Let me feel the Holy Spirit,
Truly know that Thou art mine.

All to Jesus, I surrender;
Lord, I give myself to Thee;
Fill me with Thy love and power;
Let Thy blessing fall on me.

I surrender all, I surrender all,
All to Thee, my blessèd Savior,
I surrender all.