This excerpt from Brennan Manning’s book,“The Importance of Being Foolish” spoke to me powerfully. Though I often strive to surrender, God is constantly reminding me that striving is vanity.
“The ability to surrender is a gift of God. However eagerly we may desire it, however diligently we may strive to acquire it, surrender cannot be attained by personal endeavor. With respect to the act of surrender, let me emphasize this point. It is an unconscious event, not willed by the [disciple] even if he desired to do so.”
“And yet the intensity of our desire does matter. Our dedication to growth is the single most important determinant of our spiritual development. Without an intense inner commitment, we are little more than dilettantes playing spiritual games. The pearl of great price-the mind of Christ-must be the most treasured value in our lives, and we must seek it in persevering prayer, in sacramental healing, and in the strength of the Christian community. Only then will the miracle of transparency, love and oneness unfold in our lives.”
“To think like Jesus is to experience being loved so completely by God that we are existentially incapable of being other than the children of The Father of Jesus Christ.”
“We are driven by the Spirit to proclaim by word and example the peace, justice, and forgiving love of God. Perhaps by nothing more (or Less) than our friendship extended to another, a friendship that is real, unselfish, nonproselytizing, without condescension, and full of profound respect, we can lead another to discover , ‘I too am loved by my Father in the Lord Jesus’. It is the loving awareness of God’s holiness revealed in Jesus Christ coupled with a deep compassion for redeemed humanity that creates the imperative of Christian mission.”
