The Strength in Laying it Down

Submission gets a bad rep. We hear the word and immediately think weakness, silence, control. But submission — real, spiritual submission — is anything but passive. It’s bold. It’s intentional. It’s powerful.

Author

Jennifer Paulino
April 30, 2025

Tension Builds Power

Last week we talked about the Pain of Prosperity — the unseen weight that comes with growth, refinement, and walking out your calling.

Here’s where it connects: submission can sometimes lead to that pain. It’s what builds your endurance when things don’t make sense yet. It’s choosing to stay under what God placed over you. Even when you’re misunderstood. Even when it costs you your pride.

True submission will always battle against your flesh because it’s training your spirit.

The Crushing Weight

Feature Story

Hagar, The Runaway

God Hears You in the Wilderness

In Genesis 16:9, is the first time we see the word “submit” is used in the Bible.

God tells Hagar — a pregnant, mistreated, runaway slave — to “return to your mistress and submit to her.” It sounds harsh until you read it with the weight it carries.

In Hebrew, the word “submit” used here is “ānah”, which means to humble or afflict oneself — not to be diminished, but to be positioned. In Greek, the word is hypotassō meaning to voluntarily place yourself under authority — to recognize divine order and step into alignment with it.

Submission starts with the choice to listen.

To engage with authority. To stay even when it hurts. That’s different than obedience.

Obedience is action. Submission is posture.

You can do what’s asked of you and still resist in your heart. But when submission leads, obedience becomes rooted, not reactive.

Prayer Points

Hearing, Obeying, Steadfast

Submission isn’t just about doing the right thing — it’s about becoming the kind of person who can carry what God is entrusting you with.

According to 1 Peter 2:13–15, submission silences ignorance — not with volume, but with posture.

It’s not about being walked over. It’s about being covered and aligned under God’s authority and divine order.

And in 1 Peter 5:5, Peter doesn’t just suggest humility under elders — he commands it. Because submission without humility is just performance. It won’t last.

As you pray this week keep these points in mind:

  • God, help me posture my heart to hear You—not just respond to You.
    Submission starts with listening, not reacting. Teach me to slow down and lean in when You speak.

  • Strip me of pride that keeps me from honoring divine authority.
    Whether it’s leadership, correction, or covenant — help me yield where You’ve called me to be planted.

  • Let my submission be an act of strength, not fear.
    I choose to trust that Your order is for my good — even when it stretches me.

❝

Pain teaches you where your strength ends, but submission teaches you where God’s authority begins—and when you surrender to both, you step into a power that can’t be shaken.

Your posture determines the success of your submission. And submission without respect for process — without the experience of elders, wise counsel, or spiritual authority — is often just rebellion with a spiritual filter.

God honors submission that flows from a willing, teachable heart.

One that doesn’t just want the reward, but is ready for the refinement.

This week’s prayer cues are less about asking for help and more about surrendering control.

Until next week,

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