Chapter 20: Two Groups in Real Time (2 of 2)

What you do instead is yield. You release it. You surrender the outcome. You trust that God sees what is true. That God's opinion is the only one that matters. That your reputation is not in your hands to protect.

This is not passivity. It is active trust. Active yielding. You are doing what you should—living with integrity, speaking truth when appropriate, treating people with kindness even if they have misunderstood or misrepresented you.

But you are not occupied with the outcome. You are occupied with God's will. You are practicing abiding.

What happens inside? Something remarkable. You sleep well. The injustice still stings. But the sting does not control you. You think about the rumor less and less. Not because you have forgotten it, but because you are not feeding it with your anxiety and defense.

Your relationships do not change. You remain open. You remain trusting. You remain kind. Not naive. But not hardened either. Because you are not defending yourself, you have energy to give to others.

The rumor fades. But something else has shifted. You are at peace. You are more free than you were before. Because you have practiced, in the midst of injustice, the yielding that connects you to the Spirit.

The surrendered response has produced its fruit: peace, freedom, open relationships, soft heart, trust. You have been occupied by God's will. You have been abiding.

This is what it looks like when you are yielding to the ever-present Spirit. When you are practicing the surrender that allows His power to work. When you are abiding.

The Difference

Same rumor. Same situation. Same sting of injustice. But the interior state is completely different.

Group One is occupied by the need to protect themselves. They are separated from peace. They are alienated from the Spirit's presence through their resistance. They are bound by anxiety. They are hardened by defense.

Group Two is occupied by God's will. They are connected to peace. They are open to the Spirit's presence through their surrender. They are free from anxiety. They are softened by trust.

The difference is not circumstances. The difference is who is occupying the space.

In Group One, the adversary is occupying through the carnal appeal to self-protection. The person is bound by the need to control, to defend, to manage their reputation.

In Group Two, the Spirit is occupying through the person's surrender. The person is free because they have released control and yielded to God's will.

The Choice in Every Moment

This is happening in your life right now. In real time. At this moment.

A situation arises. A carnal appeal comes. The Spirit's leading is available.

Which group are you in? It is not determined by your circumstances. It is determined by whether you are yielding or resisting. Whether you are occupying the space with your own will and the adversary's appeals, or whether you are yielding that space to the Spirit.

You can be in Group One today and Group Two tomorrow. It depends on your choice in each moment.

This is why the practice of surrender is not optional. It is not a nice spiritual discipline for especially devoted believers. It is the difference between being bound and being free. Between being separated from peace and being occupied by peace. Between being hardened and being softened.

The ever-present Spirit is ready. In every moment, He is there, waiting for you to yield. Waiting for you to recognize the carnal appeal and turn toward Him instead.

Which group will you be in? The answer is determined not by your circumstances, not by what is fair or unfair, not by what you deserve. It is determined by whether you are surrendering to God's will or resisting it. Whether you are abiding or not. Whether you are occupied by the Spirit or by the need to protect yourself. The choice is always available. The choice is always yours.