The Journey to Surrender – In Reality, Success (Finally)

Life is long for the vast majority of us. The disclaimer is for the poor unfortunates who live a tragically short life. For the average Joe or Jo, as we all know, there are challenges all throughout the various stages of life. We leap from one fiery pot into another it seems. Some last an hour or a day, others longer into the months, and there are a myriad of common problems that hinder even the unexpected moments.

Ironically, it can be one of the longer battles that can bring us to our senses. Our pride gets broken down. It could take a year or more of bucking the facts of life that stare us in the face and the eternal forces pitted against us.

You know, the person who seems softer and more open than they once were—that’s the person who’s given in (finally) to one of life’s knocks. They’ve benefited from bitter experience. They’ve surrendered. There’s a certain peace about them now.

Surrender doesn’t sound so cool. It certainly doesn’t read like “success,” “popularity,” or “prosperity” does it?

Yet, until we realise something when yet again we’re back at the starting blocks—as in another false start—we don’t learn, we don’t reflect critically over our actions and stances on these things. It’s a sort of a “Groundhog Day” experience.

That “something” is to surrender… whether that is surrender to God, to the flow of life, or to some other positive force or set of circumstances.

Surrender is the most necessary step. It’s not easy, but it’s altogether necessary. If we don’t surrender we beat up on ourselves our entire lives, struggling, fighting against the flow, when there’s patently no need to struggle.

Surrender is normally something the mature-of-years more easily experience, but it needn’t be like this. The wise young person will leap over his older (more frustrated) peers when he realises the power of surrender.

Surrender carries with it peace to sustain us under the pressure of both challenge and opportunity. It is the power to listen to and heed our own (and others good) advice. It is poise in the moment of distress; a throbbing numbness facilitating what we individually and personally might call success.

Ask for it. Seek it. Find it. Happy surrenderin’.

© S. J. Wickham, 2009.