Devotionals

FW Devotional – “Surrender VS Giving Up

Naoma Bird – 7-2-2025

Surrender vs Giving Up

On September 2, 1945, on the deck of the USS Battleship Missouri anchored in Tokyo Bay, General
Douglas MacArthur, Commander in the Southwest Pacific and Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces,
conducted the ceremony and signing of the Instrument of Surrender of Japan. Japan’s Foreign Minister,
Mamoru Shigemitsu, General Yoshijirō Umezu, and envoys from nine other nations signed the Instrument
of Surrender as well, a formal ending to World War 2, a global conflict lasting from September 1, 1939,
to September 2, 1945.

My husband and I visited the USS Missouri Memorial at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on Ford Island, where we
watched a video of the 1945 surrender. One could almost feel the tension for a moment, but when it was
over, there was a sense of overwhelming relief and peace.

The act of surrender isn’t the same as giving up. Instead, it brings relief, gratitude, and a fresh start.
It creates space where we can find peace, new opportunities, and experiences, allowing us to let go
of the past and focus on the future.

We have choices in life, to fight against the things that weigh us down or tear us apart in this world, or
give in to them. Or, come before God, our creator, who loves us, and surrender to Him, letting go of the
past so we can focus on the future. The future God has planned for us!

Isaiah 43:18-19 (ESV) “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of Old. Behold, I am
doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness, rivers
in the desert.

Romans 12:2 (ESV) “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind,
that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable.

Naoma is a retired nurse, wife, mother, and grandmother who loves sharing God’s message of love and redemption.

Contact [email protected]

 *Details noted in the Surrender of Japan from Milestone Documents, DOC’S TEACH -From the National Archive