Surrender as a Constant Practice

Surrender is the recognition that seeking God is pointless because God is nowhere to be found; but that God will come to you if you are open and accepting. This openness is first achieved in meditation or other spiritual practice, where the demands of body and mind are set aside in favor of your relationship with Spirit. However, few if any are so fortunate as to be able to spend all their time focused exclusively on a formal practice. Eventually the demands of the world must also be given some attention. For most of us, the great majority of our time and attention is devoted to worldly matters.

It is essential, then, that we learn to carry the attitude of surrender with us as we go about our daily affairs. This does not mean to be passive, but rather to conduct ourselves always in ways that are attentive to the inner Voice that first comes to us in our practice. In fact, we will find that maintaining our intention to surrender to the will of God is a very demanding exercise out in the world. First of all we must be mindful; mindful of the influence of body and mind on our attitudes and behavior, and mindful also of our interactions with people and with worldly situations, aware that these too are Divine creations. We must provide food, clothing and shelter for ourselves and any others who depend upon us, yet we must seek to do so in ways that are consistent with our commitment to Spirit. In the time-honored phrase, we must be "in the world but not of it". This requires continual self-discipline, recognizing and dealing appropriately with the demands of the small self from the perspective of the larger Self.

Joel Goldsmith reminds us of the ancient teachings that God will provide for those who surrender to It. In more contemporary terms, "being in the flow" means that by maintaining our connection to Spirit, we navigate easily the straits and shoals of worldly life. God provides the ship, the wind and the sails; all that It asks of us is to steer. With a firm and steady grasp of spiritual practice as our rudder, we are sure to bring ourselves and our communities safely to harbor.