There is a vital secret to life that we must understand: the courage to face life and the confidence to embrace an uncertain future are deeply influenced by how fully we surrender our lives to God. A person cannot possess true courage if they have not first learned genuine surrender to the Lord.
We can tell someone, “Be strong, stay firm, don’t be afraid of tomorrow.” Yet without true surrender to God, those words are nothing more than empty comfort. Even people who seem brave often possess only a false courage. That is, as long as they have not faced real struggle or danger, they can confidently say, “I believe, I am not afraid.” However, once they find themselves in a truly threatening situation, they realize that their confidence alone is insufficient to sustain them.
Human emotions are highly situational. We may say, “I’m not afraid,” but when danger comes and the threat is before our eyes, we discover that our courage lacks deep roots. The same is true of a person’s faith before God. Today, many say, “I believe the Lord will save me. I believe I will enter heaven. I believe God will be with me even in death.” Yet when they truly stand at the edge of death—or before God’s judgment—such confidence will not hold them up unless they have experienced genuine surrender to Him.
When we speak of surrender, we must understand it correctly. True surrender is not merely the willingness to hand over life’s problems to God and trust that He will help us. That kind of surrender is easy—even for those who think in transactional or self-serving ways. Many say, “I surrender myself to You, Lord,” but what they actually mean is that they are handing over their troubles, difficulties, and struggles so that God will intervene and provide solutions, which is not true surrender. It is simply a form of religiosity still centered on self, as if God exists merely as an instant solution to every human problem. Such people may not turn to shamans or other powers, yet their motives remain the same: they seek help for their own benefit.
True surrender is not about giving up problems—it is about giving up oneself entirely to God and choosing His Kingdom above all else. It means we no longer choose the world at all. Just as Abraham left everything behind to follow God’s call, we too are called to choose God completely. We cannot select both heaven and the world. Many people fail to understand this—and worse, they refuse to understand it. They view God’s demands as “unfair,” feeling as though their lives are being taken away. Yet, in truth, when a person chooses the Kingdom of God and rejects the world, it is then that they become strong, steadfast, and courageous in facing anything.
Imagine living in the days of Jesus—would we choose to be His disciples? Almost everyone would surely say, “Yes, I would be a disciple of Jesus.” But do we truly understand what inspired the disciples to follow Him at all costs? Initially, they even held incorrect concepts. They still thought in terms of earthly kingdoms, positions, and power. But after a long process—falling, rising again, being rebuked, taught, and finally witnessing the resurrection of Christ—they came to understand the true meaning of surrender.
That is why Jesus said, “Make disciples of all nations.” This command means that just as Jesus taught, guided, and shaped His disciples with love, we too are called to lead others through the same process—the process of becoming true disciples who live in complete surrender to God.