Post #6: Surrender & Abide
May 14 & 15, 2026
CT Scan & Surgery #2
I am a first-born, independent, rule-following, strong-willed child who was born with my hands on my hips. I will admit I like to be in charge. Not of other people necessarily, but of my own circumstances, my own self. I don’t like other people telling me what to do. I want to be part of the decision-making. However, I have quickly realized that outside of choosing my wig, the rest of this situation is completely out of my hands. I have no control whatsoever in terms of the facts of the matter or how to deal with them. Doctors will tell me what medicine I will get and when. They will determine the dates of surgery, of treatments. They will tell me how to deal with side effects. Someone else is in control of my physical plan.
Choosing my wig was probably the last thing I had much control over. The next day I had my CT scan to look for places the cancer may have already spread. The following day, I had surgery #2 so that the oncologist could take a firsthand look for herself to see what maybe did not show up on the scan. From this, she would determine the staging and protocol for treatment. I would abide BY her plans while abiding IN Him. The first “abide by” means to accept or comply; the second, “abide in” means to dwell or rest.
I can’t control much but, what I can control is how I react spiritually speaking. Reminder: the doctors are dealing with the facts and I am dealing with the Truth. I chose to rest and dwell/abide in Him. I chose to surrender. Surrendering (laying down my own will) goes against my nature, but it is much easier to do since I know that the one I am surrendering to is the One who is sovereign over all, the One whose plan is perfect. I chose to be a willing participant in His perfect plan, in His perfect timing. I know that he is working all of this for good. I am an instrument in His perfect plan. Honestly, it feel pretty good NOT to be in control.
· I am called to surrender to God’s perfect plan. “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” Luke 22:42 This is Jesus’ living example of surrendering His own will to the Father’s.
· Abiding in Him is the place to be. Jesus said, “Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” John 15:4-7
· The Lord’s grace is sufficient. Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 12:8-10, “Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weakness, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecution, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
PRAYER
Jesus, you surrendered to God’s perfect plan by going to the cross on our behalf. Thank you for setting the example for us to follow of what surrender looks like. Even when our desires pull us in another direction, let us always remember that God’s plan and His timing are perfect. Lord, let us learn how to abide in you. You are the vine and we are the branches. Let us remain connected to you so that we may bear your fruit. Apart from you, we can do nothing. When we abide in you, you will hear our prayers and answer them. Praise God that Your Grace is sufficient and your power is made perfect in my weakness. Amen.
