Monday, March 24, 2014

Surrender To Win

 By Clint Patterson

   “Never surrender” is a phrase that has been around for many years.  It has been screamed out by men of war; it has been used to motivate sports teams to victory.  It can be found in entertainment, and it also has been used by many boys pretending to hold off a fierce attack of world-dominating creatures.  This phrase has been a part of almost every person’s life at one point or another.  I can relate to this phrase, for I grew up being one of those boys who had a wild imagination.  Nevertheless, while the world shades this phrase with honor and respect, the truth is that there is more to life than the physical battles we face.  There is a spiritual warfare that is taking place as well, and in order to win, we must surrender to God and fight no more.
   2 Kings 21 is an account of Manasseh’s reign over the southern portion of the divided kingdom of Israel .  Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, who was a devoted man of God, was nothing like his father.  Instead, Manasseh spent his days in absolute rebellion against God and His Law, and if one reads only 2 Kings 21, he would think this is where the story ended.  However, 2 Chronicles 33 fills us in on what 2 Kings leaves out, and there we find a wonderful example of someone surrendering to win.  Due to Manasseh’s sinful ways, God allowed him to be carried away by the hooks of his enemies.  When he arrived in an enemy territory, instead of looking to heaven with a high hand toward God, Manasseh humbled himself and prayed to God.  God heard Manasseh’s prayer and brought him back to his country, where he spent the rest of his life serving God (2 Chronicles 33:10, 17).
   If Manasseh would have lived by the phrase, “Never surrender” with regards to God, he would have died a captive in a foreign land.  Because he surrendered, he was delivered.  In our life we will face battles where we need not surrender, but with God, we must surrender to win!                  

- Clint Patterson, Youth and Family Minister for the Main Street Church of Christ in Milan, TN. Chad Ezelle serves as the congregation's pulpit minister and may be contacted via the church's website:
http://www.mscoc.us

 
 

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