Trust Begins With Surrender
January 7, 2026
Week 1 Focus, Why is trust even an issue?
“Then I heard the Lord asking, ‘Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?’ I said, ‘Here I am. Send me.’” Isaiah 6:8
“And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice, the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.” Romans 12:1
Break It Down
Isaiah has just been undone before God’s holiness, then cleansed and steadied. Only after that does he hear the question. And it’s not “What’s your plan?” but “Who will go?” Isaiah’s response is not strategy, it’s surrender.
Paul echoes the same call in Romans, real worship isn’t only words, it’s a life laid down, an offering God calls acceptable.
Trust Question
When God invites you forward, do you reach for a plan first, or do you offer yourself first?
God’s Intention
God is not mainly trying to upgrade our decision-making. He is forming a people who trust Him enough to say yes. Trust is not proven by how well we can map the path, it is proven by whether we will step onto the path with Him.
Weave It In
This is why trust is even an issue, because we love strategy. Strategy feels safe. It gives us the illusion of control. It lets us move forward while still staying in charge.
But Isaiah 6 shows us a different order.
First, Isaiah sees the King.
Then Isaiah is undone.
Then Isaiah is cleansed.
Then Isaiah hears the call.
And only then does Isaiah speak: “Here I am. Send me.”
That line is not brave because Isaiah suddenly feels confident. It’s brave because Isaiah trusts the One who is calling him.
And it connects back to where Isaiah began. In Isaiah 1, God calls His people back from hollow religion into listening obedience. Isaiah 1:19 captures the posture well, a heart that is willing and obedient, a heart that stops negotiating and starts yielding.
By Isaiah 6, that posture has deepened. The question is no longer theoretical. “Who will go?” And Isaiah answers with the fruit of a willing heart: “Here I am. Send me.”
Romans 12:1 brings that same invitation into our everyday lives. The call of God is not always a platform, sometimes it’s a quiet, daily offering, a surrendered tongue, a surrendered schedule, a surrendered attitude, a surrendered yes in a place where nobody applauds.
Trust begins here, not “Lord, show me the full plan,” but “Lord, I’m Yours.”
Practice for Today
Two minutes of willing obedience.
1) Whisper: “Here I am.”
2) Pray: “Lord, make me willing.”
3) Ask: “What is one obedience You’re inviting me into today?”
4) Do that one thing, quietly and faithfully. Not to prove yourself, but to practice trust.
Prayer
Lord, I confess that I often trust my planning more than I trust Your leading. I want to see a map before I move. But today I hear Your invitation, and I want to respond like Isaiah, “Here I am. Send me.”
Make me willing, and obedient. Not just inspired, but fully surrendered. Let my life be an offering, daily, that You find acceptable. I am Yours. Lead me Lord. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.