Consecration

"This blessed life is not an attainment, but an obtainment. The soul must fully recognize it is God's gift in Christ Jesus and cannot be gained by any efforts or works on our own. God can bestow the gift only upon the fully consecrated soul, to be received by faith and great thankfulness.

I once tried to explain consecration to the physician in charge of a large hospital. 'Suppose in your rounds a patient entreats you to take his case under your special care in order to cure him, but at the same time refuses to tell you his symptoms or take your prescribed remedies. He tells you, 'I am quite willing to follow the directions that seem good to me, but in other matters I prefer judging for myself and following my own directions.' What would you do?'

'Do!' the doctor replied indignantly. 'I can do nothing for a patient unless he puts his whole case into my care and obeys my directions. Doctors must be implicitly obeyed, if they are to have any chance to cure their patients.'

'That is consecration,' I continued. 'God must have the whole case put into His hands, and His directions must
be implicitly followed.'

'I see it!' he exclaimed. 'And I will do it; God shall have His own way with me from henceforth!'

An entire surrender of spirit, soul and body to His control in a life of inevitable obedience may look hard to a soul ignorant of God. To those who know Him, it is the happiest and most restful of lives. Could we but for one moment get a glimpse into the mighty depths of His love, our hearts would spring out to His will and embrace it as our richest treasure."

Source: Hannah Whitall Smith
"The Christian's Secret of a Happy Life"