A Magnolia's Heart Beats

WFW - A Prayer of Surrender

One of the most precious prayers we can pray is a prayer of complete surrender. As we surrender ourselves to God, He reveals things about us to ourselves, causes us to repent of the sinful ways hidden within, and leads us down a path with Him far better than any we could ever imagine for ourselves. David prayed such a prayer.

Total surrender in this type of praying will bring to light anything we need to know about ourselves. Sometimes we fall back into old behaviors or old hurts may be stirred up within us, reminding us that we haven't dealt with forgiveness, jealousy, or matters of pride. Often we don't know what issues God will bring to mind when we pray this prayer. We may not feel particularly sinful or we may be doing something so routine and habitual that it doesn't seem like a sin to us. We must invite God to search our hearts and free us. The Psalmist invited God to do just that in the verse above.

Search Me

The Hebrew word for search is chaqar. It means:

1) to search, search for, search out, examine, investigate
a) (Qal)
1) to search (for)
2) to search through, explore
3) to examine thoroughly
b) (Niphal)
1) to be searched out, be found out, be ascertained, be examined
c) (Piel) to search out, seek out

Inviting Him to do this kind of intimate search and knowing requires alot of trust and faith in the One who loves you so dearly. He will never use what He reveals to you to lead you farther into the bondage of sin. What He might just do is reveal to you the way that is keeping you tangled.

Know Me

The Hebrew word for know is yada`, and it means:

1) to know
a) (Qal)
1) to know
a) to know, learn to know
b) to perceive
c) to perceive and see, find out and discern
d) to discriminate, distinguish
e) to know by experience
f) to recognise, admit, acknowledge, confess
g) to consider
2) to know, be acquainted with
3) to know (a person carnally)
4) to know how, be skilful in
5) to have knowledge, be wise
b) (Niphal)
1) to be made known, be or become known, be revealed
2) to make oneself known
3) to be perceived
4) to be instructed
c) (Piel) to cause to know
d) (Poal) to cause to know
e) (Pual)
1) to be known
2) known, one known, acquaintance (participle)
f) (Hiphil) to make known, declare
g) (Hophal) to be made known
h) (Hithpael) to make oneself known, reveal oneself

This is not a request to be ask God if you aren't ready to totally surrender to Him. He will truly reveal and make known to you and to Himself your heart and mind.

Test Me

The Hebrew word for test is bachan. It means:

1) to examine, try, prove
a) (Qal)
1) to examine, scrutinise
2) to test, prove, try (of gold, persons, the heart, man of God)
b) (Niphal) to be tried, proved
c) (Pual) to make a trial

The Hebrew word for anxious thoughts is sar`aph. It means:

1) disquieting thoughts, thoughts

The Hebrew word for offensive, or `otseb, means:

1) pain, sorrow
2) idol

While we are never to put God to the test, we should certainly ask Him to test us. In surrendering to this examination, we are tried and often refined during the process.

He longs to free you, just as you long to be freed from any anxious thoughts or offensive ways.

Lead Me

I love this portion of this prayer. After our hearts and minds and anxious thoughts have been tested and the wicked ways are exposed, we can truly mourn over our sins, confess and repent them, and be led in "the way everlasting."

Ways, or the Hebrew word derek, means:

1) way, road, distance, journey, manner
a) road, way, path
b) journey
c) direction
d) manner, habit, way
e) of course of life (fig.)
f) of moral character (fig.)

God leads us in His way. We follow His example and with freshly cleansed hearts we are prepared to journey down a road of holy conduct. We have a fresh new start! Our manners and habits are back on track and we, in our total surrender, are set back on the path once again.

What is this path? The everlasting path. The path we lost sight of in our sin. While our eyes were on the world and situations around us, they were off God. They were off the goal.

The Hebrew word for everlasting is `owlam. This means:

1) long duration, antiquity, futurity, for ever, ever, everlasting, evermore, perpetual, old, ancient, world
a) ancient time, long time (of past)
b) (of future)
1) for ever, always
2) continuous existence, perpetual
3) everlasting, indefinite or unending future, eternity

Our eyes are back on God and on the eternal life set before us. Make no mistake, we do not lose eternal life just because we've backslidden, but we can lose sight of it.

In Closing

Total surrender in this prayer reveals the things we need to cast aside, give to Christ to carry, or move beyond. It removes the sin set before us and sets in place forgiveness and moving beyond our sin into hopefully a more constantly surrendered life with Him.

Father, search me and try me and know my anxious thoughts. Cast them far from me and remove the transgressions You reveal to me. While I mourn over the sins I have committed, I rejoice in Your forgiveness and am ready to be placed back on the path You have for me. Help me continue to keep my eyes on You and the eternal life You have promised me through Jesus Christ my Lord. In His Name I pray. Amen.

Are you ready to surrender to God in prayer, letting Him examine your heart and mind? Join me in inviting Him to search my heart and lead me in the way everlasting.

S - Submit to God in your surrender. "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." ~ James 4:7 (NIV)

U - Untangle yourself from anything that keeps you from total surrender. "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." ~ Hebrews 12:1 (NIV)

R - Respond with surrender to God's call on your life. "Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" ~ Isaiah 6:8 (NIV)

R - Reject the world and surrender to God's ways. "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." ~ Romans 12:2 (NIV)

E - Earnestly surrender to God daily in prayer. "pray continually;" ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:17 (NIV)

N - Never lose your joy as your surrender in trust to God. "In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name." ~ Psalm 33:21 (NIV)

D - Determine to let God lead you as you surrender to His plan. "Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths;" ~ Psalm 25:4 (NIV)

E - Examine yourself to make sure you are surrendered to Christ. "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?" ~ 2 Corinthians 13:5 (NIV)

R - Reinforce God's Word in your life by reading it daily, surrendering to Him. "I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you." ~ Psalm 119:11 (NIV)

The purpose of Word filled Wednesday is to share God’s word (no famous quotes or other literature — only the beautiful word of our Father) through photo’s & a Bible verse! For more WFW, visit http://crittyjoy.typepad.com/. Be sure to link up and share your own, and drop her a thank you for hosting this wonderful meme. It always blesses my heart to read all the posts and see the photos and verses. This is a wonderful way to minister to others and to be ministered to by reading others posts. Please visit by clicking on the button below.

Note: this post originally ran 02/25/09