J Heinrich Arnold-Freedom from sinful thoughts.pdf

FREEDOM FROM SINFUL THOUGHTS - S E L F - S U R R E N D E Rmy voice and opens the door, I will go in and eat withhim, and he with me” (Rev. 3:20).Many people wonder why God does not force his willon them, if he is so powerful. Yet that is simply how Godis. He waits for our readiness. It is true that he punishesthose he loves and calls them to repentance; but henever forces his goodness on them.If a father were to take his child by the throat andforce his good intentions on him, the child wouldinstinctively feel that this was not love. For the samereason, God does not force his will on anyone. So we areconfronted by a momentous question: are we willing tosurrender ourselves to God voluntarily – to open thewindows of our hearts so that his goodness can enterand fill our lives?To be sure, the struggles we have concerned ourselveswith in this book make it clear that such surrender isnever easy, but takes place against a backdrop ofpowerful forces. Jesus himself had to fight so hard tosurrender his will to the Father’s that he sweated dropsof blood. Evil surrounded him on all sides, yet heremained faithful: his attitude was “Not my will, butyour will.” This should be our attitude too.Often the most difficult situations – unexpectedtragedy or death, suffering or sudden loss – will arise inlife without our understanding why. It is the same in the38