Everyday we chose. Sometimes we wake up and forget that we have the power to choose.

I meet too many people who believe they are victims of other people’s decisions. They are tired, they are stressed and some are angry because someone else is making them do something or with-holding something from them. They have allowed someone else to take away their power.

I was on this hamster wheel.

I was working to gain the approval of people. I would do or say things so they would like me more. I would go against myself, sacrifice time with my family and I got myself all twisted in order to please others.

When I’d share the experiences of my day with others, I’d get filled with frustration, my voice sounded angry and whiny. I’d complain about how much I was doing and how I wasn’t getting the acknowledgement or recognition I thought I deserved. It was toxic. I was allowing others to have power over me and I let them tell me what I should value and how I should spend my time.

It took me a while but I realized I didn’t want to be the kind of person who allowed others to bully them or make decisions for them. I didn’t want to be the victim. I was awakened to the fact that my value comes from God, my creator, not how others see me. God is my source of affirmation and strength. I quit seeking affirmation from other people, especially those whose values weren’t in line with my own.

On my journey to discover this truth, I had to bow down and worship. I showed up with Jesus. You see each day. Jesus calls us to come to him, we get to choose EVERY DAY! I came to understand that my choice to allow God to be my source of strength and my purpose, required me to choose to surrender my life to God each day, over and over and over.

To surrender your life to God sounds like it would be a simple thing, and making the decision to do so can certainly be and easy choice. The act of living it out each day can be one of the most difficult things you will ever encounter, but certainly the most rewarding. My practice of making time to bow down each day to give God praise and thank him for his guidance in my life gave me the ability to hear God’s voice more regularly and clearly.

Too often we say we are too busy or it’s too much work or a million other excuses we give for not spending time with God. My experience tells me if I didn’t carve out this time, regularly, I’d be a different person than I am today. I’d probably look and feel older because I’d be carrying the weight of others expectations. I might not even recognize the person I would be if I didn’t listen to God’s call to “come”.

Prayer is powerful! It can change you and your perspective. It can change the world! Take a knee or two, bow your head, fold your hands and breathe. Allow your body and your mind to rest in God for a little while. Answer God’s request for you to “come” to rest in him!