September 23 – Surrender to the Current
The coracle became a symbol of total abandonment to God’s providence. The monk entered it without oars or rudder, trusting the currents of the sea to carry him wherever God willed. John O’Donohue
Gregg’s Reflection
On the river, I’ve learned that fighting the current only exhausts you. When wading into fast water, the safest way forward is often to angle yourself with the flow rather than resist it. Richard Rohr reminds us: “Faith does not push the river, because the river is already flowing.” The current of God’s grace is moving whether I recognize it or not.
There have been times when my determination to control outcomes left me weary and anxious. The harder I pushed, the more I felt swept under. But in the moments I’ve let go—trusting God’s timing rather than forcing my own—I found myself carried to places I could never have reached by effort alone.
Surrender is not passivity; it is the active choice to trust that God’s river is wiser than my striving. The current carries me not away from life, but more deeply into it. When I release my fear of drowning, I begin to feel buoyed by love, and even my struggles become part of the flow of grace.
Scripture
When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.
Isaiah 43:2
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.
Psalm 37:5
Ancient Quotes
To trust in God is to let go of self-direction, to yield as a boat yields to the current, knowing it will be borne to the shore of His will.
Isaac of Nineveh, Ascetical Homilies
I have no desire but to launch my little coracle on the high seas of faith, and there leave it to the will of the winds, the care of God, and the guidance of the Spirit.
Attributed to St. Brendan the Navigator, c. 6th century (preserved in later retellings of Navigatio Sancti Brendani)
Modern Quotes
The coracle became a symbol of total abandonment to God’s providence. The monk entered it without oars or rudder, trusting the currents of the sea to carry him wherever God willed.
John O’Donohue, Anam Cara, p. 64
Faith does not need to push the river, because the river is already flowing. We are in it.
Richard Rohr, Everything Belongs
Defeat and surrender always feel the same to me. But what does it matter? They both bring me to my knees. Oh, break me down and put me back together. I surrender, I surrender now. And hold me in the promise of forever, I surrender, I surrender now.
Mumford and Sons, Surrender
Journaling Prompts
- Where in your life are you straining against the current of God’s love?
- What fears make surrender difficult for you?
- Recall a time when letting go carried you to a place of unexpected grace.
- What would it look like to trust God’s river in your life this week?
Flow is that state where everything is unfolding in beautiful harmony. Divine Flow is the river of grace that is the spark of every creative act: every song, every painting, every scientific discovery. Slow down and tap into that flow.
Go deeper into this week’s theme:
Read the full Week 38 Reflection: River/Divine Flow