"O Jesus the Crucified I will follow Thee in Thy path. Inspire me for the next step, whether it leads down into the shadow of death or up into the light. Surely in what place my Lord the King shall be, whether in death or life, even there also will Thy servant be. Amen."
- Lilias Trotter
Lilias Trotter finishes Parables of the Cross with this simple yet profound prayer. What amazes me is how much is reflected in these few words.
Humility. Absolute surrender. A request for guidance coupled with a willingness to travel whatever path is revealed, even suffering and death. A heart's desire to do the Lord's will. Peace, knowing one is under Christ's loving and sovereign care.
Lilias trusted her Saviour with her life.
How many of us truly trust the Lord with our lives? It is one thing to surrender our lives, our talents, our skills, our weaknesses, but to willingly accept how the Lord decides to use what we have offered is quite another. Do we reserve areas of our lives for ourselves, unwilling to let Him have control because we have our own goals and afraid He will spoil them? Do we doubt His lovingkindness, not fully resting in the promise that He will work everything out for our good?
How can He not know what is best for us? After all, He created us. Our heavenly Father "knoweth our frame; He remembereth that we are dust" (Psalm 103:14).
He knows us better than we know ourselves. "O, Lord, Thou hast searched me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, Thou understandest my thought afar off. Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O Lord, Thou knowest it all together. Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid Thine hand upon me" (Psalm 139:1-5).
Surrendering our lives to Christ involves knowing God's character. If we know who He is, then we know that everything that touches our lives has already passed through His divine hand. When we offer ourselves to Him, we have nothing to lose. "He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for My sake shall find it" (Matthew 10:39). As Elisabeth Elliot says, fulfillment only comes through sacrifice. We need not worry what Christ will do with our sacrifice. Like Lilias, we only need rest in the truth of His character and His promises, knowing He doeth all things well.
"Lord, You have assigned me my portion
and my cup; You have made my lot secure."
- Psalm 16:5, NIV
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