Abandonment (surrender) to God’s will is essential to living a true Christian life. We human beings love to be in charge, but the truth is that we are not.
As the saying goes, “God is God, and we are not!” In God’s will is our peace. He knows what is best for us, because He can see the whole picture, while we are limited in what we can see from moment to moment.
Our beloved foundress Mother Angelica well understood the human difficulty in surrendering to God’s will. She once said, “Admit it: We’re battling against God’s Will and our own wills. Give me one example of a problem you have, and I’ll make a bet: you’re fighting God’s will.”
She also said: “God asks us to unite our Will to His. Since He is Goodness and Wisdom Itself, by conforming our moment-to-moment existence to His plan, we become holy, happy and develop a strong will—one that is united to God.
“It is a matter of two wills becoming one will. If a spark becomes one with a fire, it disappears completely and all one sees is a brilliant blaze. What was in itself a mere flicker becomes a light for all to see.”
“We should abandon ourselves entirely into the hands of God, and believe that His providence disposes everything that He wishes or permits to happen to us for our greater good” (St. Vincent de Paul).
After living a wayward life, Blessed Charles de Foucauld rediscovered his faith. During a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, he discerned his calling to follow Jesus in His hidden life at Nazareth.
After being ordained to the priesthood, he lived among the poor in Algeria. In a spirit of love and brotherhood, for 15 years he spent his life in adoration, manual labor, and tasks such as translating the Gospels into the Touareg language. He was killed by marauders on December 1, 1916. Blessed Charles was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI on November 13, 2005.
The prayer of abandonment (surrender) below was written by Blessed Charles de Foucauld. (And you can ask his intercession to help you truly surrender to God’s will!)
Prayer of Abandonment (Surrender Prayer)
Blessed Charles de Foucald
Father, I abandon myself into Your hands; do with me what You will.
Whatever You may do, I thank You.
I am ready for all; I accept all.
Let only Your will be done in me and in all Your creatures.
I wish no more than this, O Lord.
Into Your hands I commend my soul.
I offer it to You with all the love of my heart,
For I love You, Lord, and so need to give myself,
To surrender myself into Your hands without reserve,
And with boundless confidence,
For You are my Father.
Amen.
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