The Power of Surrender

Unless otherwise noted all photography by Tim Forrest.

Far greater than the force of will or the unyielding pressure of the human ego is the peace attained through of surrender.

Though it sounds contradictory, surrender implies a conscious decision coming from a place of deep wisdom; it is in no way a passive act but a participation in the flow of all energies that shape our universe.  And surrender is not the same as quitting or giving up.

Instead of swimming against the current, which tires us out pretty quickly, in surrender we relax and flow with the waves into an effortless expanse of grace.

Surrender allows miracles to happen by calling upon forces far greater than ourselves to solve problems, often in ways we aren't currently able to imagine.

Photo by Taylor Ann Polito

We know it's time to consider the miracle of surrender when we've been struggling with some problem for a long time. 

Yet, when we're stuck in a situation that never improves, our primary thought is to continue to act out, to force something to change, no matter how difficult, but this impulse only leads to more and more suffering and many more bad choices related to the extreme measures we have to take to keep the dysfunctional pattern alive.

What if we were to stop fighting, stop forcing, stop feeling the need to control everything?

This sense of control is an illusion anyway, but one to which we cling mightily. 

But everything about us is temporary. 

Our bodies. 

Our wealth. 

Our friends. 

Our education. 

Our status. 

Will all pass away.

The most highly fortified aspects of our egos will one day pass away, and when they fall, they often fall so fast the unfolding of that process is mind boggling. If you've experienced this, you understand what I am saying.

So what's left after all the outer aspects are gone? That's where the deepest reserve of power and healing wait for us to tap into what can only be described as an infinite ocean of grace.

Surrender is not giving up; surrender is a powerful lesson in experiencing God.

Only when we quell the useless distraction and noise of the small mind, by allowing for silence and emptiness, spending time in the void instead of fearing it [that place of complete helplessness and  perceived powerlessness where all we can do is pray or cry out in the night] do we ever invite the wisdom of the greater mind.

Regarding so many problems we face, everything I've ever taught about the limits of human perception and the biases we often bring to analysis and personal narratives all cry out for surrender as a method of problem solving that shifts the energy as well as one's perception so solutions can appear where there once was only suffering and struggle.

Again, surrender is merely a willingness and an opportunity to listen to God. 

It allows us to be strong in the most terribly broken places. It allows for healing grace, peace, and serenity, and sometimes even new information in the form of insight which enters into our consciousness straight from the void of hopelessness and despair. 

Remember Einstein's notion that the brain that created the problem cannot solve the problem?

We need new energies and new thought forms to work their way into our lives; surrender allows this.