Skip to main content

“All of us long to control our own lives.”

A thought by Jon Tyson from his book, The Burden Is Light: Liberating Your Life from the Tyranny of Performance and Success (p. 60). The Crown Publishing Group. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

That is the truth. 

Jon says, “It is one of our primary coping mechanisms to fend off heartache and pain. And control is not a bad thing in itself. We should take control over abusive, coercive, and harmful things. But when we become obsessed with managing our existence to the point that we stop trusting God or depending on him, we enter the dangerous territory of seeking to become God ourselves. Our culture is riddled with control mechanisms that facilitate this idolatry.”

He goes on, “Seeking to control God and thus narrate the details of our own story cuts at the heart of our faith. Christianity is not primarily a plan of protection against the brokenness of the world but a relationship with Christ in the midst of it. When we confuse those two, we end up using God as a kind of genie to ward off our existential angst. It’s amazing how often this sort of thinking makes its way into our lives. We were taught as teenagers that if we abstain from promiscuity, God will give us great sex lives and stable marriages. We have been taught that tithing, giving God a tenth of our income, will fend off financial disaster and bring in blessing. If we live with integrity and operate according to biblical principles in the workplace, we can advance and safeguard our careers. But God is not a genie, life is not a blank canvas, and reality is too complex a thing to get our arms around. Using religion in an attempt to manipulate God merely distracts us from the goal of our faith, which is to enjoy an intimate relationship with him.”

He later says, “Saint Ignatius of Loyola said that sin is an unwillingness to trust that what God wants is our deepest happiness. Until we are convinced of this, we will seek to control our own lives. But knowing that God sees all the moments and concerns of our lives, is committed to working all things together for our good, and cares about us deeply gives us the confidence to let go. When we trust God, we are not surrendering to chaotic forces or blind chance. We are surrendering to love. And that act of surrender allows us to be caught in an embrace that will never let us go.”

He really does love us.  He really does, and He really is working all things out for good in our lives.  Will you show that you really trust Him by surrendering control of your life to Him?  Will you?

Yes, yes! 
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“There’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.”

A thought by Bob Goff from his book, Everybody, Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People ( p. 41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)   Have you ever built a sand castle or maybe a Lego castle?   Have you? Bob says, “We actually build castles all the time, out of our jobs and our families and the things we’ve purchased. Sometimes we even make them out of each other. Some of these castles are impressive too. Lots of people come to admire what we’ve built over the course of our lives and tell us what great castles we have. But Jesus told His friends we weren’t supposed to spend our lives building castles. He said He wanted us to build a kingdom, and there’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.” Bob goes on, “You see, castles have moats to keep creepy people out, but kingdoms have bridges to let everyone in. Castles have dungeons for people who ha...
Post a Comment
Read more

“When you understand that life is a test, you realize that nothing is insignificant in your life.”

A thought by Rick Warren, (2012-10-23) from his book, The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? (Purpose Driven Life, The) (p. 57). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. To realize that from God’s perspective life is a test goes a long way in determining how you handle your life.   It is important to see that in testing your character is both developed and revealed.   Rick goes on to say that “even the smallest incident has significance for your character development. Every day is an important day, and every second is a growth opportunity to deepen your character, to demonstrate love, or to depend on God.” So there is a God purpose behind each situation in your life.   Even the bad ones are there to strengthen you and develop you.   You see those bad situations are really good ones because they are there for your good. I start each day with a reminder that God is good.   Not every situation that is going to come in my day is good but because G...
Post a Comment
Read more

“Sometimes we think we’re stuck simply because things are hard.”

A thought by Matt Perman, from his book, How to Get Unstuck (p. 52). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.  (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the That is a possible trap for many, isn’t it? Matt says, “But if you’re continuing to make progress and aren’t experiencing huge snags, you’re not stuck. Rather, you’re in a dip. “A dip is a temporary hard slog that you will get through if you keep pushing and don’t give up. And pushing through the hard slog is actually the fastest route to the destination. In these cases, you will be especially tempted to bail. Be discerning and able to identify that you’re in a legitimate dip and you’re not a failure.” Matt says another trap to be careful of, “Some people are stuck and don’t know it.” He goes on, “Everything can be going your way, going smoothly, and going quickly. Everything feels and seems wonderful. Yet... you are still headed toward a dead end, a form of getting stuck, if you are leaving God out of t...
Post a Comment
Read more