How to Bravely Entrust Your Children to Jesus

Posted on Feb 01, 2018 Topic : Inspirational/Devotional, Women's Christian Living
Posted by : Lee Nienhuis

In Christendom we toss around this phrase casually: “I surrendered that to God.” We sing it in songs all the time. When we say we surrender something to Christ, we mean we are turning it over to Him. We’ve decided to quit fighting and we recognize His authority over us.

I love that powerful idea, but I was absolutely floored when I began studying and found that Scripture doesn’t use that word to describe the process we’re talking about. The use of the word surrender in Hebrew is strictly applicable for surrendering to another man, as in troop to troop after a battle. In no instance is the word used in relation to what man does toward God.

Don’t get me wrong, though—the idea is there. Scripture uses other words to describe what man does when overcome with the realization that God is infinitely more powerful and worthy than he is. It uses words like submit, succumb, self-denial, yield, commit, and my favorite, entrust.

This is such a relief to me. We’re not in a battle with God, and we don’t need to quit fighting Him. Besides, the warrior instinct inside us is alive and strong, and there will be no giving up when it comes to protecting and defending our children. The word surrender just doesn’t seem to apply. But oh, the blessing of entrusting.

Entrusting means giving over the responsibility, putting something into another’s care or protection. This is what my heart longs for when it’s overwhelmed by my inability to keep my children safe, healthy, protected, obedient, and faithful. I desperately desire to assign the responsibility to someone who will not fail at the task, who cares even more than I do.

I believe Jesus came to this same realization. He did not surrender to the Enemy. But rather, “When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly" (1 Peter 2:23 ESV, emphasis added).

Friends, I think we must consider our entrusting with eyes wide open. God does not promise our families perfect health, financial prosperity, worldly success, or even safety in this world. He will not hand us back everything we lay down. Some of the most godly families I know have faced unspeakable loss.

Christ shows us, though, that although God may choose suffering for us, we can entrust to Him everything of great worth, knowing He truly empathizes with our pain. During our darkest hour, we may find a depth of fellowship with our Savior we would know in no other way.

A Mom’s Prayer

Father, I’m so grateful that You have experienced the releasing of a child. This means You aren’t standing at a distance from this process of entrusting my family to You. Forgive me for the ways I am allowing fear and doubt to cloud my belief in You. Teach me to rest in Your steadfast, unchanging character. You can have my children. I trust You. Amen.