By a show of hands, how many out there enjoy being told what to do? Yeah, that’s what I thought. It isn’t part of our nature to enjoy submitting to authority, even to the ones we know we should obey, is it? The good news is that a right response to authority actually lowers our stress.

It would be easy to dismiss this whole “submitting to authority” thing if it weren’t a part of God’s design. He commands His followers to “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. For such is the will of God ….” (1 Peter 2:13–15).

The real problem, though, is not just the act of submitting. There are times we submit to authority just because we know what will happen if we don’t. The police are a good example. They are authorities who carry guns and handcuffs. If we don’t do what they say, it can go badly for us. Our bosses at work are also examples. If we don’t obey them, they can make our lives miserable or even put us in the unemployment line.

The real problem with submitting goes even deeper. We may submit to authority on the outside, and then deeply resent it on the inside. It’s like the story of the toddler who was standing up, and her father told her to sit down. She refused to sit down. He said again, “I told you to sit down.” She kept standing there defiantly. In desperation he said, “Sit down, or I’ll spank you.” Then she sat down, but she looked up at her father and said, “I’m sitting down on the outside, but I’m still standing up on the inside.” I think we would all agree that this isn’t the real, heartfelt attitude God is looking for.

There are some real benefits for us when we learn proper submission. Think about how different your life would be. You would have less stress and would generally be a much happier person.

It is possible to have a good attitude about authority without being angry or bitter. Let’s discover how together.

Here is the key, and though it may surprise you, it really works: Cheerful submission to authority happens when we willingly submit to God as the ultimate authority in the universe.

There are two main reasons why submitting to God makes sense.

Logic tells us that resisting God’s authority is a doomed plan from the beginning. He made everything and has always existed. There could be no greater authority than He is. “O Lord, the God of our fathers, are You not God in the heavens? And are You not ruler over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and might are in Your hand so that no one can stand against You” (2 Chronicles 20:6).

Jesus boldly declared that He possessed that same authority: “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18). Paul explained that one day Christ’s authority will be clear to everybody: “God highly exalted

[Christ], and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:9–11).

Here is another powerful reason for submitting to God’s authority. God deeply and eternally loves those who follow Him. The greatest proof of that love was displayed on the Cross of Christ. “… If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:31–32).

Don’t miss this. Jesus demonstrated submission: “Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:8). Why did Jesus do that? Jesus died for you because “your iniquities [sins] have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you…” (Isaiah 59:2).

Submitting our hearts to Christ is very rewarding because of the peacefulness that follows (see Philippians 4:7). Knowing that God is ultimately in control goes a long way to calm our hearts. “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).

God-centered submission removes a lot of stress from our lives. Is that what you want in your life?

If you long for supernatural peace, then open your heart to Christ’s offer: “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful” (John 14:27).