Tag: control

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Incoming!

“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy . . .”1—Paul, writing to believers in Philippi

Sometimes world events remind us of how little we are in control. Russia invades Ukraine, and we can but watch. Terrorists do unspeakable things even to the most defenseless, and we feel helpless. Infighting in Sudan displaces over five million people from their homes; we can only ache for them. We are powerless. Or so it seems . . .

Isn’t it fascinating that some of Paul’s most impactful ministry arose from his time in prison, a plight in which virtually all control is stripped away? It was as “an ambassador in chains”2 that Paul wrote his epistles to the churches in Ephesus, Colossae, and Philippi—inspired writings that have taught, corrected and guided Christians as canon for two millennia hence. It was in the isolation of incarceration that Paul prayed fervently and continually for the churches he loved so much. Though devoid of control, the prisoner was anything but powerless.

The same is true of us. I have heard of prayer being likened, in a sense, to an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM): we can confidently launch petitions from anywhere in the world, for their range is unlimited, and no weapons exceed the power of their warheads. We don’t have to be in control, just faithful in prayer and confident in the One who hears us and is sovereign above all things.

When overwhelmed to the point of hopelessness, sometimes even unto prayerlessness, I personally find inspiration in a word of encouragement from Peter Kreeft, author and professor of philosophy at Boston College, and I share it here with you . . .

I strongly suspect that if we saw all the difference even the tiniest of our prayers make, and all the people those little prayers were destined to affect, and all the consequences of those prayers down through the centuries, we would be so paralyzed with awe at the power of prayer that we would be unable to get up off our knees for the rest of our lives.

May we be the faithful who unite in the power of prayer and trust in Him who hears us.

When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth.”—Ephesians 3:14-15 NLT

Father, I trust in your wisdom, power, and love. Hear me now as I pray . . .

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

1 Philippians 1:3-4
2 Ephesians 6:20

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The Wise Plans of a Good God

Our executives gathered for a two-day offsite strategy and teambuilding session. This one included yet another personality evaluation for all, showing among other characteristics our comfort level with “control.” Regarding influencing others and taking control of a situation, the exercise showed me to be pretty comfortable—on the high side of average. As for my contentment with others taking charge and influencing my direction, however, let’s just say I had a strong preference not to be controlled.

For most, the Christian walk is a continual process of relinquishing control, not only over our own plans, but over God’s plans, too. We can be impatient with God’s pace of revelation (“Please, I need to know right now!”) and we can be anxious about what He has in mind for us (“What if He wants to send me as a missionary?”). And in case He hadn’t thought of it, we even go so far as to suggest how God might go about accomplishing our requests. (“Was that thunder, or a celestial chuckle?”)

God has plans for His people, each of us and all of us. Paul assures us, “we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”1 His are “plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”2 Yet in unsearchable wisdom—and often to our frustration—God keeps His plans a mystery, unknowable to us until He reveals each in His time and in His way. But while we may not always know God’s plans, we do always know His self-proclaimed character— “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.”3 This is who God is.

So comforted in God’s character that we do know, we can be contented with His plans we do not know. If He is by nature good, faithful, loving, and compassionate, certainly His plans for us will reflect the same. We can rest assured, as David did, “You are good and You do good,”4 and “Your faithfulness endures to all generations.”5 We can confidently worship with Jeremiah, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”6 We can trust the wise plans of our good God and relinquish control today. What a relief.

“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9.

Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done wonderful things, things planned long ago.7 Amen.

1 Romans 8:28
2 Jeremiah 29:11
3 Exodus 34:6-7 NIV
4 Psalm 119:68 NASB [emphasis added]
5 Psalm 119:90
6 Lamentations 3:22-23
7 Isaiah 25:1 NIV

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The Power Grid

It was an opportunistic play, for sure. With Central Ohio temperatures maintaining in the upper 90s a couple of weeks ago, there began to emerge some electrical brownouts—pockets of limited power—some of them intentional in order to prevent a broader outage. This left thousands suffering without electrical services one day, so at our Bible study the next morning, the leader posited this timely question for us first to ponder and then to discuss: “How do you respond when you are powerless?” We approached “powerlessness” in the broader sense, of course, as in losing control of certain aspects of our life, such as our physical health, employment and income, acceptance or affection from others, or being subject to those who gain authority over us in some way.

Our natural reactions to losing control came to mind first: anger, fear, self-doubt, sadness, frustration, helplessness, weariness and humiliation. Perhaps you can add a few from your own personal experiences, for we’ve all suffered personal “power outages” in some ways and to some degree. Yet God is a transformer, and over time, He grows us up, not as stronger versions of our natural selves, but as new creations made into His own likeness and nature, and unto His higher purposes. Continuing in conversation, we shared times when “losing control”—or the illusion thereof—had worked to our own good, bringing us face to face with our own limitations and recognizing the boundless power of God. Then to our responses to powerlessness, we gratefully listed a few more: relief, rest, and confident reliance on God.

God is always in control, but He does not leave us powerless. Quite the opposite, He has lavishly and lovingly poured His power into us through the indwelling of His Spirit, not for the pursuit of our selfish desires, but that we may live effectively in and for His eternal purposes. He strengthens us with power through his Spirit in our inner being, so that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith.1 He gives us power “to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that [we] may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”2 And “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.”3 When we lose power, take heart! For God restores us in His.

Christ lives in us.4 He is in control.5 We live in His power.6 So let’s go.7

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.8

1 Ephesians 3:16-17
2 Ephesians 3:18-19
3 2 Peter 1:3
4 2 Corinthians 13:5
5 Philippians 3:20-21
6 Ephesians 3:21
7 Matthew 28:19
8 Ephesians 3:20-21