Control…
I think one of the reasons it is so hard for us to
surrender, is that it means we have to give up control. Something I think most of us
can admit we aren’t good at doing.
We have been trained early on to set goals and follow those
dreams and goals. How many of us have set goals only to find out they aren’t
turning out how we envisioned?
Our attempts to control things in our world are seen through
trying to control how our children turn out; tracking our life from exercise to
how many “likes” we get on a social media post; planning projects, parties and
trips…the list goes on and on.
What happens when all this planning doesn’t turn out how we
envision? I know for me, the result is anxiety, worry and stress…the list goes
on and on.
In the book Choose Joy: Finding Hope and Purpose When Life
Hurts, Sara shares with us her experience of trying to be in control of her
life, her health, her future. Through this control she shares with us that “it
is through the hardest times in her life that she stayed open enough to learn
her greatest lesson. Control is an
illusion.”
James 1:2-4 says, “Consider
it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you
know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
God uses the
circumstances in our life to help us grow. If we allow ourselves to be open to
what God needs from us, it will change our heart. Through Sara’s circumstances,
she not only learned that control is an illusion, she also learned that the
only thing she can control is whether she chooses to open her heart. Open her
heart to embrace the circumstances she was given so that she could fulfill the mission
and purpose God had for her.
Sara’s life is a
true example that it works! When we let go of the illusion of control and
surrender our lives to the one who is in control, we find peace and joy in this
life.