{"id":151027,"date":"2010-11-29T09:42:58","date_gmt":"2010-11-29T07:42:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/espirited.com\/maryann-williamson-what-it-means-to-surrender-to-god\/"},"modified":"2026-02-14T15:06:46","modified_gmt":"2026-02-14T13:06:46","slug":"marianne-williamson-what-it-means-to-surrender-to-god","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/espirited.com\/en\/marianne-williamson-what-it-means-to-surrender-to-god\/","title":{"rendered":"What It Means to Surrender to God"},"content":{"rendered":"

Going through extreme forms of powerlessness and despair is an inevitable stage in the spiritual process of transformation. And it is very important to understand this, because recognizing this turning point helps intense suffering become a conscious act of spiritual surrender.<\/span><\/p>\n

Below is the story of Marianne Williamson, author of the bestseller A Return to Love, who beautifully describes what this looks like:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, no matter what hot water I had gotten into, I had always thought that I could get myself out of it. I was cute enough, or smart enough, or talented enough, or clever enough \u2013 and if nothing else worked, I could call my father and ask for\u00a0money. But finally I got myself into so much trouble, that I knew I needed more help than I could muster up myself\u2026 There was nothing else to do and there was no one left to call. My fear finally became so great, that I wasn\u2019t too hip to say \u201cGod, please help me.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

So I went through this\u00a0grandiose, dramatic moment where I invited God into my life. It was terrifying at first, but then I kind of got off on the idea. I had thought that things would\u00a0improve. It\u2019s as though my life was a house, and I thought God would give it a wonderful paint job \u2013 new shutters perhaps, a pretty portico, new roof. Instead, it felt as though, as soon as I gave the house to God, He hit it with a giant wrecking ball. \u201cSorry, honey,\u201d He seemed to say, \u201cThere were cracks in the foundation, not to mention all the rats in the bedroom. I thought we better just start all over.\u201d\u2026<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

This didn\u2019t turn me off to God so much as it made me\u00a0respect\u00a0His intelligence. It implied He understood the situation better than I would have expected. If I was God, I\u2019d have busted me too. I felt more grateful than resentful. I was desperate for help.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

A certain amount of\u00a0desperation\u00a0is usually necessary before we\u2019re ready for God. <\/i><\/b>When it came to spiritual surrender, I didn\u2019t get serious, not really, until I was down on my knees completely\u2026 Until your\u00a0knees\u00a0finally hit the floor, you\u2019re just playing at life, and on some level you\u2019re scared because you know you\u2019re just playing. The moment of surrender is not when life is over. It\u2019s when it begins\u2026<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

For many people, things have to get very bad before there\u2019s a\u00a0shift. <\/i><\/b>When you truly bottom out, there comes an exhilarating release. You recognize there\u2019s a power in the universe bigger than you are, who can do for you what you can\u2019t do for yourself…\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

How ironic. You spend your whole life resisting the notion that there\u2019s someone out there smarter than you are, and then all of a sudden you are so relieved to know it\u2019s true. All of a sudden, you\u2019re not too proud to ask for help.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

That\u2019s what it means to surrender to God.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u2013 Marianne Williamson \u201cA Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of a Course in Miracles\u201d<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Going through extreme forms of powerlessness and despair is an inevitable stage in the spiritual process of transformation. And it is very important to understand this, because recognizing this turning point helps intense suffering become a conscious act of spiritual surrender. Below is the story of Marianne Williamson, author of the bestseller A Return to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":20961,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[646],"tags":[705,683],"class_list":["post-151027","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-spiritual-intelligence","tag-maryann-williamson","tag-spiritual-transformation"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t