All to Jesus I Surrender   

Perhaps you’ve heard of David Livingstone, a pioneer missionary to Africa who walked over 29,000 miles during his time there. This was a man deeply committed to serving the Lord no matter what the cost. His wife died early in their ministry, and he faced stiff opposition from his Scottish brethren. But no matter what happened, still he persevered. These words were found in his diary: “Send me anywhere, only go with me. Lay any burden on me, only sustain me. Sever me from any tie but the tie that binds me to Your service and to Your heart.”
A missionary society once wrote to Livingstone and asked, “Have you found a good road to where you are? If so, we want to know how to send other men to join you.” Livingstone wrote back, “If you have men who will come only if they know there is a good road, I don't want them. I want men who will come even if there is no road at all.”
In Mark 12:28-34, a scribe asked Jesus, “What commandment is the foremost of all?” And Jesus answered, “The foremost of all is, ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ And the second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
There is one word that stands out in that passage, one word that I believe Jesus intentionally chose to use four times. Do you see it? ALL! We are to love the Lord our God with ALL our heart, soul, mind, and strength. That is total commitment. He is to be everything to us.
That’s what the Lord desires of us. He wants us to give to Him our hands, our feet, our hearts, and our minds. He wants it ALL! He wants us to surrender everything to Him, and He wants to be everything to us!
Yes, He demands our all. But does He not deserve our all?! Did He not give His all for us? Our God loved us so much that He gave His precious beloved one and only Son, and love like that surely compels us to give our lives completely back to Him.
May we truly live according to the words of this familiar song: “All to Jesus I surrender; all to Him I freely give. I will ever love and trust Him, in His presence daily live.”

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