“Things are out of control because you are in control. God is asking us to yield completely so He can surround us with His protection and care.”
Lisa Bevere
A few months ago I discovered what happens when you’re 30,000 feet up in the air and your body decides it wants to pass out in response to feeling nauseated. I can say I was definitely not in control of that situation! Fortunately though, God was.
The root of control is fear. When we struggle with insecurity, we do whatever we can in our power to somehow make things more secure. Children from alcoholic families, where everything is unpredictable, are prime candidates to become controllers. Those with abandonment issues may also have a need to control their environment. Being bossy and ruling over others are symptoms of control. Controllers can be dominating and manipulative, as a form of protection and taking care of themselves.
Norman Vincent Peale says, “The cure for fear is faith.” But I might add, it’s not faith or trust in people or possessions, (Psalm 20:7), but in the Lord Himself. Being out of control forces your hand at watching God be in control. Besides praying, there was nothing I could do but take comfort in the fact that my heavenly Father would take care of me. And He did. He had an internal medicine doctor from Vanderbuilt sitting right across the aisle. The steward was very kind and in contact with medical personnel on the ground, and elevating my legs while breathing in oxygen restored color to my face.
The enemy works to destroy our trust in God, just as he did in the Garden of Eden. Psalm 125:1-2 shows what happens when we put our trust in God. “Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but endures forever. As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds His people both now and forevermore.” Now that’s what I’m talking about: secure protection from the hand of God. My little ways of trying to maintain control and security are nothing compared with the mighty hand of God.
It is scary to let go of control, but it is well worth the freedom that comes from trusting God to take care of you, instead of doing everything in your own power to make yourself feel secure. Someone once said, “Security is not the absence of danger, but the presence of God no matter what the danger.” And you can be sure of this, when you trust God to take care of you, you will never have to face your fears and insecurities alone, for the Lord is always with you.
I recently celebrated a friend’s 97th birthday and seized the opportunity to ask her for any words of wisdom. “Trust Him,” was her sage advice. I want to encourage you to exchange your fear for faith, your trusting in self for trusting in God, and your controlling activity for inactivity or rest.
You can choose to control or you can choose to trust. The former keeps you in bondage while the latter is the entrance to freedom. The choice is yours.
“As your faith is strengthened you will find that there is no longer the need to have a sense of control, that things will flow as they will, and that you will flow with them, to your great delight and benefit.”
Emmanuel Teney
Relevant Reflections:
1. Who do you trust the most? God or yourself?
2. Identify ways you tend to control life in order to protect yourself and find security?
3. Name one way you can let go of control and trust God.
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