Submitting to God

Submitting to God
Jan 7, 2008

Psalm 81:11 "

But my people did not listen to my voice; Israel would not submit to me."

Have you ever been on a canoe trip or even whitewater rafting? One of the first things they teach you (or should have taught you) is how to handle rapids should you find yourself overboard. In rapid water, no matter how good of a swimmer you may be, drowning is inevitable. Unless, of course, you submit to the water. The only way to get out of rapid water alive is to relax, fold your arms across your chest, hold your breath, and let the water take you where it will. The human body is buoyant enough to allow you to pop up out of the water as soon as it is safe.

In life, we don't often submit to the Lord and whatever it is He might have for us. If that is the case, drowning in life is certain. Several thousand years ago, God's people did not submit to Him and let's just say they drowned in that rapid water. It frustrates God when we do not simply relax and let His water take us where He needs us, however rapid that water may seem. We usually try to swim our hardest, though we might be skilled, yet to no avail because His desire for our lives is so much stronger than our own abilities.

For some reason, the very word submit makes us cringe, as we feel we would no longer have a free will or be our own person. We feel as if the life we might live under submission to the Lord might be substandard, limited, or even boring. But listen to what God says regarding what He would do if His people would submit to Him. Listen to how vivid and awesome God's own words are in the verses following Psalm 81:11.

“O that my people would listen to me, that Israel would walk in my ways! Then I would quickly subdue their enemies, and turn my hand against their foes. Those who hate the Lord would cringe before him, and their doom would last forever. I would feed you with the finest of the wheat, and with honey from the rock I would satisfy you." Psalm 81:13-16

Have any enemies you'd like to see cringe?

1. Have you been swimming against the Lord and unwilling to submit?
2. Isn't it time you were served with the finest of wheat and honey that would satisfy?