I guess this should be obvious...

but I am further realizing the importance of submitting to God. Ok. So James 4:7 says, "Submit yourself to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you." Romans 12:1 says, "Therefore, I urge you brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer yourselves as a pleasing sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, this is your spiritual act of worship." Then it tells us how to do this... "do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is, His good, pleasing, and perfect will." So it seems that submitting myself to God is the precursor to a) victory in spiritual warfare, b) knowing God's will, c) having a renewed mind, and d)transformation. This is where submission to God seems to coexist with the principle of stewardship. I get to decide if I am the owner of a) my mind, b) my body, etc. or if God is and I am just a steward of it. If I choose to reject this "reasonable act of worship" as being unreasonable, I should not expect God's hand of blessing to flow into what I have not given Him to take charge of. However, if I have given control to him, then the best I have to be is a employee, not the owner. Obviously, I need to use what He has given me towards whatever tasks are there, but God is in charge.

Now then, whatever fruit comes out of my life, whether positive or negative, is not me. My identity is wrapped up in what God's Word says about me (I am God's child - John 1:12, God's friend - John 15:15, etc.). Whatever positive fruit comes out of my life, just is my attempt at bringing honor and glory to the owner, to Him be the glory for working through me. On the flip side, whatever bad happens, while I may be responsible for the action and have probably reaped what I have sowed, is not me, either. I am not the fruit of my life, positive or negative. That said, I should expect pruning in my life to produce more fruit and I should cut off the things in my life that are not producing fruit (John 15), but ultimately I am not the things that I have done. Hopefully, this makes sense...