Faith enables us to realize that God is on our side, while surrender enables us to put ourselves on God’s side.
When we practice bhakti and seek a relationship with God, we may often hear words like faith and surrender. While we may have a general understanding of these words, it’s immensely helpful, even essential, to understand them in the context of deepening our relationship with God.
Faith can refer to the existence of God, his indwelling presence, or his loving nature. These aspects of God’s character can especially encourage and empower us in our bhakti, particularly when we face adversities and adversaries in the world. When we encounter opposing situations and people, it is crucial to know that God is not only with us but also for us. God is not just a distant presence residing in his kingdom; he is also within us, in our own hearts, as indicated in the Bhagavad-gita (18.61 and 15.15). He is a diligent companion who desires the best for us, caring for us even more than we care for ourselves.
When life’s obstacles seem insurmountable and we find no way to overcome them, we may start wondering whether God cares for us at all. At such times, faith gives us the eyes to see God’s presence and benevolence in our lives. Through the inspiring and revealing narratives given in sacred texts, we see that people who faced unimaginable difficulties were ultimately protected and delivered by the Lord. Knowing this, we can trust that, despite the dark phase we may be going through where we cannot see God’s guiding hand, our faith assures us that he is with us.
Such faith is naturally meant to inspire us to surrender, as it did for Arjuna, whose faith was strengthened by hearing the wisdom of the Gita and who responded to Krishna’s message by surrendering, as indicated in Bhagavad-gita 18.73. Surrender is the logical, reciprocal next step after faith. Once we understand that God is on our side, we seek to ensure that we are on his side.
While going through life, we may rarely think of ourselves as opposing God. However, we may unknowingly make choices that distance us from him. When we see surrender as an expression of reciprocation, it becomes dynamic. We consciously and consistently choose actions that bring us closer to God and avoid those that take us away from him. Such surrender strengthens the bond of love between us and our Lord, making it complete.
Faith enables us to recognize God’s love for us, while surrender enables us to seek entry into God’s love. Put another way, faith enables us to see that God’s plan is working for our ultimate benefit through the things happening in the world around us. Surrender is our way of playing our part in God’s plan, allowing him to work both from the outside and inside to lead us to our ultimate good.
Summary:
- To have a genuine relationship with God, we need to know not only that he exists but that he is on our side, working for our ultimate good.
- Faith inspires us to reciprocate by surrendering, which means persisting in actions that bring us closer to him and resisting actions that distance us from him.
- By seeing God’s plan at work around us and surrendering, we enable his plan to work through us.
Think it over:
- How can faith nurture your relationship with God?
- How does faith inspire surrender?
- Consider a difficulty you’re facing and contemplate how faith and surrender can empower you to go through it.
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18.73 Arjuna said: My dear Kṛṣṇa, O infallible one, my illusion is now gone. I have regained my memory by Your mercy. I am now firm and free from doubt and am prepared to act according to Your instructions.
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