Sharing Resources to Help You Grow Personally, Professionally & Financially

Sometimes it helps to get a little dose of encouragement—along with a good cup of coffee!—to start the day. Today we discuss submission.

Hopefully the message below will help you get off to a good start for the week.  Please feel free to forward the newsletter on to others that you think would benefit from the content.

Submission

Never let it be said that I shy away from controversy! While it might be wise to stay away from the concept of submission, in so doing I would be missing a huge opportunity. So here goes.

Recently, I heard a great perspective on the topic of submitting. Someone pointed out that, to best understand what it means to “submit,” you would be well served to break down the word “submission.”

• “Sub” – To come under/fall under
• “Mission” – A goal, objective, or vision

They argued that when someone agrees to submit, they are agreeing to line up under a particular vision. That perspective is incredibly insightful! It highlights why so many people struggle with the concept. Breaking it down further reveals a lot.

I would argue that we don’t like the “sub” part of it as we are selfish. Each of us wants what we want. To accept the control of another/to allow another to provide us with direction causes us to bow up. The picture of a “strong independent American” is one that’s tattooed in our minds. And yet, when we think of the very best amongst us, we see that they put their needs/desires away for the benefit of us—look no further than the 13 service members who gave their lives for all of us this past week. They may not have agreed with things, but they followed orders.

One clarification here, BLINDLY submitting is NEVER something I can or will advocate. We need to exercise discernment when deciding who we will line up behind if/when we choose submission.

And that brings us to the “mission” aspect of the word. Here we often have a void. Personally, I find that a vast majority of people do NOT have a personal vision of where they want to head in life. Without the personal vision, it’s difficult to get behind anything! Furthermore, when we perceive that others lack vision, we are not drawn to follow them—to submit to them. Having a clear vision allows you to (i) choose a solid course of action in life and (ii) line up behind others who share that vision.

When I heard this perspective, it really opened my eyes as to why we all struggle with the concept of submission so much. It’s due to our internal struggles with purpose and desire to act as our own personal god. Only when we recognize that we are NOT God and that we need to focus more externally on His vision of the future are we able to find peace in the concept of submission. Furthermore, when we are in the company of others who have similarly embraced these concepts, it becomes much easier to line up behind them.

That brings us to this week’s question:

• What part of submission are you struggling with in your life?

Thanks for sharing a bit of your time with me this Monday morning.

Have a great week!

Curt

Blog post from this past week:

Monday Morning Motivation - Position