Surrender

I’ve learned a lot in my first few months as a youth minister. In particular, I’ve learned a lot about myself, like that I am terrible at asking for help. At the retreat we put on this past weekend as I was running around taking care of meals, someone asked me if I needed help, and then followed that with the question, “Will you accept help?”
The way that question was phrased struck me.
Will I accept help?
In our lives nowadays, we so easily become overwhelmed in the busyness of our schedules and our commitments. So often we try to shoulder all these responsibilities on our own, thinking that we are superhuman and can achieve anything. Sometimes, we do manage to get everything done, but other times, we try to do too much, which leads to sub-par performances and things only getting done halfway.
So why don’t we accept help? I know for me, it comes down to pride. Too often, I let my pride get in the way of asking for help. Being the newest employee in our office, I experience this a lot. Not wanting to appear incompetent or uncommitted, I often try to do everything myself and figure out things on my own instead of reaching out for help from my fully capable and kind coworkers. I waste one of my greatest resources because of my pride and usually end up stressed out or doing things the wrong way. My mind tells me that asking for help is a weakness. The truth is, this is a lie. It’s a ruse of the devil that we allow ourselves to believe. In all aspects of life, especially youth ministry, we cannot be afraid to ask for help.

When I was a lifeguard a few years ago, we were taught to spot drowning victims by watching for hands raised straight up above the water. This is a sign of surrender, an action that means, “I cannot fight this fight anymore, and I need someone to come and rescue me.” Without this act of surrender, the struggling swimmer would likely drown trying to save him- or herself. This act of giving up and asking for help is the very action that saves.
We can’t be afraid to ask for help. There are so many resources around us to help us do our jobs better. Someone has been in your shoes and has done what you’re doing before. Talk to them. Find out their secrets. Collaborate with others for ideas. Countless times, a good idea that I came up with has been made infinitely better by the insight and creativity of others. There is power in collaboration. In order to do great work, we have to surrender our pride and accept guidance and advice.
Let go of your pride. This life is not meant to be lived on our own. He who humbles himself will be exalted.
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