Surrender | Learning to Trust Him Again

Sometimes peace doesn’t come when life makes sense.

Sometimes it comes when we finally place what we can’t control into the hands of God.

Episode Summary

In this episode of Wilder Whispers, Shā shares a deeply personal hospital story about fear, uncertainty, unexpected mercy, and learning to trust God when nothing made sense.

Through the story of Abraham in Genesis 22, we explore a truth many of us know—but often struggle to live:

Surrender is not weakness. It is trust.

When we know who God is, trust begins to grow. And when trust grows, surrender becomes possible.

If you’ve been carrying something heavy, trying to control an outcome, or longing for peace in an uncertain season, this episode is an invitation to open your hands again.

Scripture References

Genesis 22

Psalm 9:10

Luke 22:42

Philippians 4:7

Listen Closely

You can trust Him with what you can’t control.

Thanks for spending this time with me on Wilder Whispers.

Whispers are the language of closeness. They invite us to slow down, lean in, and listen.

If this episode encouraged you, consider subscribing, leaving a review, or sharing it with someone who might need a quiet reminder that God sees them and cares deeply.

Until next time--keep listening

This is Wilder Whispers. I'm Shā Wooden.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:07

Hey friend, welcome to Wilder Whispers, a space where we slow down and listen for God's voice in the ordinary moments of life. I'm Shay Wooden, and I'm so glad you're here. We often expect God to speak through big moments, a sermon, a breakthrough, a perfectly quiet prayer time, and he does, but so often he chooses quieter ways, in the middle of everyday life, in the unnoticed moments, in gentle whispers that invite us closer. Each episode, I'll share one simple story and the quiet truth God revealed through it. Not because it was extraordinary, but because he was present. So wherever you are right now, take a breath, let's slow down, and listen together. Last episode we talked about what it means to truly know God. Not just knowing about him, but knowing him personally. And when we begin to know him, trust begins to grow. But here's the tension we all feel at some point. We say we trust God, but we still struggle to surrender to him. Because surrender is where trust gets tested. It's one thing to believe in God, but it's another thing to believe God and release control of your life to him. And that is what today's episode is about. About nine months after I had a major surgery, I started having pain in my abdomen. At first it was mild, but over time it kept getting worse. One afternoon, Don and I were at lunch, and when I stood up from the table, the pain was sharp enough that I knew something was wrong. I needed to have it checked, and I was able to get in to see my doctor that same afternoon. The doctor examined me for only a few minutes. He pressed on my abdomen, looked at me, and without much explanation told me to go immediately to the emergency room. When we arrived at the ER and walked up to check-in, they were waiting for me and took me straight back. They ran test after test, blood work, x-rays, ultrasounds, scans. And then we waited. And waited. By this point, it was late at night. My parents were at home watching Britney, so it was just Don and me sitting in that hospital room wondering what was going on. Sometime after midnight, a nurse who was in training came into the room. While she was talking through the results, she casually mentioned something we hadn't heard before. She said the word mass, and suddenly the room felt different. Fear tried to take hold in that moment. It was late, we were alone, and we were still waiting for someone to explain what was happening. And finally, sometime between two and three in the morning, the doctors came in with answers. There was something inside my abdomen the size of a baseball. They didn't know exactly what it was, but they knew it needed to come out. So I would be having surgery the next morning. When you hear words like that, your mind immediately begins running in a hundred different directions. But in that moment, Don and I did the only thing we knew to do. We prayed. The news wasn't good and nothing about it made sense. And we needed God to do what we couldn't do for ourselves. We didn't know what the outcome would be, but we knew this. God was there and he could be trusted. And in that room, in the middle of all that uncertainty, we made a decision to trust him, to surrender to his plan, even if the path was hard. The next morning they took me into surgery, but when they opened me up, there was nothing there. What they had seen the night before was gone. So they simply closed me back up. And in a way I've never forgotten, God reminded us that He is able to do what we can't. That season taught me something that has stayed with me ever since. Not everything will make sense, but God can be trusted. And the peace of God doesn't come from having answers, it comes from trusting Him. And the more I've thought about that, the more I've realized something. Surrender doesn't come easily because surrender requires trust. One of the clearest pictures of this kind of trust is found in Genesis 22. God speaks to Abraham and says, Take your son, your only son, the one you love, and sacrifice him. Abraham would have understood exactly what that meant. This wasn't symbolic. God was asking for Isaac, the promise, the son he had waited for. But this moment didn't come out of nowhere. Earlier in Abraham's life, there were moments where fear still had a grip on him. Twice he lied about Sarah being his wife. Not because he didn't believe in God, but because he didn't fully trust him yet. He tried to protect himself. He tried to control the outcome. So when you look at Abraham's story, you don't see perfect trust. You see someone learning. Learning what it meant to follow God. Learning what it meant to rely on him. Learning what it meant to believe that God can be trusted. And over time, something began to change. As Abraham walked with God, as he saw his faithfulness, his trust grew. So by the time you get to Genesis 22, this isn't blind obedience. This is trust that has been formed. Because Abraham knew something. Isaac wasn't just his son. Isaac was the son of promise, the one from whom God had said a nation would come. So when God asked Abraham to sacrifice him, Abraham wasn't acting blindly. He was acting in trust. He trusted that God was faithful to his word. So much so that he believed even if Isaac died, God would still keep his promise. Scripture tells us Abraham said to his servants, Stay here, we will go worship, and we will come back. Not I will come back, we will come back. That's trust. We don't surrender what we don't trust God with. And trust is something we learn as we walk with him. The object of your trust matters. Scripture says in Psalm 9:10, those who know your name will trust in you. Because in Scripture, God's name reveals his heart. His name tells us what he's like. And Abraham learned those names through a lifetime of walking with God. El Shaddai, the God Almighty, all-sufficient and strong. El Elion, the Most High God, above every power and every problem. Abraham didn't trust God in Genesis 22 because he knew facts. He trusted God because he had come to know who God is. And when you begin to know God that way, trust begins to grow. Because trust is not built merely by trying harder. Trust grows through revelation. And when you know his name, you learn his heart. And when you know his heart, surrender becomes possible. Because if your trust is in outcomes, you'll hold on. If your trust is in control, you'll resist surrender. But if your trust is in God, you can release what he asks for. That's why Abraham was able to surrender. Not because it was easy, but because he trusted the one who would ask. And when Abraham reached the place of surrender, God intervened. The angel of the Lord called out and stopped him. And Abraham lifted his eyes and saw a ram caught in the thicket. God provided what Abraham could not. And Abraham named that place Jehovah Jirah. The Lord will provide. That matters because provision often appears on the other side of trust. Sometimes we only recognize God as provider when we obey him enough to keep walking up the mountain. And we see that same tension in Jesus when he was in the garden. He prayed, Not my will, but yours be done. That's surrender. Jesus fully trusted his Father. Surrender isn't weakness, it's the expression of trust. We don't struggle to surrender because we're rebellious. We struggle to surrender because we don't fully trust. At the root of control is unbelief. Not always loud, not always obvious, but present. And until trust grows, surrender will always feel impossible. And if we're honest, this is where many of us get stuck. We say we trust God, but when it comes time to surrender, we hold on. Sometimes the issue isn't that God isn't working in our lives. It's that we're already full, full of our own plans, full of fear, full of trying to manage outcomes. It's like a sponge. A sponge can only absorb liquid if it's empty. But once it's already saturated, it can't take in anything more. And in that same way, when our hearts are full of control, there's no room left for trust, no room left for peace. So we keep trying to hold everything together while God is inviting us to release it. Because surrender isn't about losing something, it's about making room for something greater. So the question becomes, what are you still holding on to? A situation? A relationship? An outcome? And the truth is, we can't fix what only God can handle. We try, we think it through, we carry it, we manage it. But in the end, we're holding something we were never meant to carry. And sometimes that's exactly what keeps us from experiencing his peace. Because peace doesn't come from having control, it comes from surrendering it. So take a moment and ask the Holy Spirit, what am I still holding on to? And whatever comes to mind, you don't have to keep carrying it. You can place it into the hand of a faithful father, the hands that formed you, the hands that love you, the hands that know what to do with what you don't understand. Because surrender isn't losing your life, it's entrusting your life to someone wiser than you, someone kinder than fear tells you, someone more faithful than circumstances suggest. So today, trust him again. Release what you can't control and place it into the hands of the one who can be trusted. And if you'd like, let's bring that to him together. Father, thank you that we're never outside of your care. Even in the moments we don't understand, even in the places we can't control, you're still there, still present, still with us. Father, you see what we've been carrying, the things we've tried to manage, the places where fear has caused us to hold on tighter. And today we bring those things to you. We release what we can't control, we let go of what we can't fix, and we place it back into your hands. Teach us to trust you, not just with our words, but with our lives. Help us believe that you are good, that you love us, and that you can be trusted, even when we don't understand what you're doing. And as we surrender, fill us with your peace. The kind of peace that doesn't come from having answers, but from trusting you. In the name of Jesus, amen. And maybe that's what we carry with us today. Not answers, not control, but the quiet assurance that even when life feels uncertain, we don't have to hold everything together. Because peace of God doesn't come from controlling life, it comes from trusting the one who holds it. And even in the places that feel painful, God doesn't waste what wounds us. He is able to take what we would never choose and use it for something good. Today's whisper to carry with you is this you can trust him with what you can't control. Thanks for spending this time with me on Wilder Whispers. I hope today's story reminded you that God is closer than we often realize and that he's still speaking, even in the ordinary moments of life. Whispers are the language of closeness. They invite us to lean in. Stay attentive. God is not far away. He's not silent, he's near, and he's speaking. Until next time, keep listening. This is Wilder Whispers, and I'm Shay Wooden.