By Dr. Ashley Miller Anderson
Surrender. If 2020 has taught us nothing else, it has taught us that we are not in control, God is. I vividly remember this time last year when the world was revving up in excitement for 2020 to arrive. I remember mantras of “perfect vision,” and discussions on social media about how this year would be monumental in so many ways. Three months in, the world seemingly turned completely off its axis and many of us have been left with heavy loss and a great deal of turmoil.
I have often grieved the great events that never were able to manifest and the cancelled sports experiences, but what I know for a fact is that God makes no mistakes. I truly believe that God placed us all on this proverbial time out so that we can attend to the things in our lives of value, the things connecting us with our real purpose for being on this earth. I do not know about you, but I have been so busy being busy that some of my purpose work has being lost by the wayside. I needed the pause button to refocus on my family, my self-care, and proactive use of my spiritual gifts. You see, we often fill our plates with things we think will make us successful, things that check a box on our never-ending to-do lists, but we often lose track of the why. Why did we enter this career space in the first place? What am I supposed to be doing with the gifts I have been blessed with and who should I be pouring into? We just work, work, work, often investing our time and energy into the dreams of others and “doing what we have to do.” It is easy to get lost.
This year, I have been reminded many times of this scripture in Proverbs 16:9 (NIV), “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.” We can plan all we want, but if our plans are not in alignment with the path God has us on, it will never be. The year 2020 has taught me that God will strip us of all things necessary to get our attention. Whether it’s money, social status, a relationship, a family member, a job or career field, God will slam the door and lock it in your face if you refuse to listen to His whispers. I once read a piece about preventative healthcare stating that you should listen to your body whisper so that it does not have to scream. I suggest the same in our Christian walks. Listen to the whispers of God so that He does not have to scream to get your attention.
Find time to be still with God daily. It is during this quiet time where you can build relationship and ask for guidance. It is during the time when the phone is down and the constant input from life is turned off that you can hear the whispers of our Lord. It is during this time that you can stop wrestling and actually surrender to His will. I challenge you today to surrender the purpose and direction of your life to God. Stop wrestling. Take your hands off the wheel and just sit down. You can trust Him to get you to the final destination.