Karen Girl Friday- Have you ever wished for control?
I’ve desired control over circumstances and specific areas of life.
The no-control feeling reminds me of an amusement park ride. Because the controls are in the hands of the ride operator, not me or any other rider.
So the few times friends talked me into a free-fall ride or roller coaster, I prayed the entire time for the Lord to get my feet back on the ground.
It’s a helpless feeling.
While the Lord continues to teach me how I’ve never had control, the struggle still sometimes rears its ugly head.
I believe God is always in control. And He’s on His throne. The Lord’s CEO of the world and my life. So if the Lord manages the world and all of creation, He certainly manages my life well.
But I discovered a few things within my control. And God controls everything else.
(1.) Attitude: What I Control
Why do parents, teachers, and coaches often ask for an attitude adjustment? Because for kids and adults alike, our attitude is something within our control. Attitude makes all the difference in tough circumstances, a relationship hiccup, an unwanted project at work, and so on.
We learn a lot about attitude from Jesus.
“Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility consider one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 2:3-5 (NASB, emphasis added)
(2.) Choices
The ability to choose occurs throughout life. Even daily choices come our way. And choices vary from simple things like what to eat for breakfast to complex choices like what career path to take.
But we need to weigh important choices carefully, especially ones that can change our lives for good or bad. When we fail or sin, it affects us, the people closest to us, and our relationship with God.
Also, we get to choose mercy or vengeance, forgiveness or bitterness.
The best choice we make:
“And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15 (ESV, emphasis added)
(3.) Words: What I Control
Words hold power whether they roll off our tongues or our fingertips. Our words speak life or death. What we say can build up and encourage. And what we say can tear down and destroy.
While we can’t control the words of others, we do control our own words.
“Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.” Proverbs 18:21 (ESV)
(4.) Actions
Again, we have no control over other people’s actions—none whatsoever. But we possess the power over our own actions and behavior. We take ownership of what we do and how we act. This includes our responses. God’s people even more so.
Still, it’s not easy, it’s hard. However, if we walk in the spirit and live the crucified life, our actions transform more and more into the likeness of Christ.
“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” Galatians 5:16 (ESV)
“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20 (ESV)
Who’s in Control?
I’m not in control of things only meant for God Almighty. When I desire it, I’m wanting to take over God’s job.
I can’t control other people’s words, actions or responses. I’m only in control of myself. And I only do this well when I’m walking in the Holy Spirit.
This is why the fruit of the Spirit is just that—fruit that comes from and in and through the Holy Spirit only.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV)
But we were never meant for control in some areas of life.
Every morning invite Jesus to come along with you in your day. Sure, Christ is always with us, but extending the invitation from our heart shows we care about Jesus’ involvement in our daily lives.
Every morning invite Jesus to come along with you in your day!
Father, we often want to control things, the circumstances and specific areas of our lives. It's a helpless feeling when we struggle to have control As God is on His throne, and ruler of the world and my life, He manages them well, including my life. What I contol is my attitude! We learn a lot about attitude from Jesus.
The ability to choose occurs throughout our lives daily, like choices that very from simple things like what to eat for breakfast to complex choices like what career path to take. We need to weigh important choices carefully, especially ones that can change our lives for good or bad. When we fail or sin, it affects us, the people closest to us, and our relationship with God. Also we get to choose mercy or vengeanace, for giveness or bitterness.
The best choice is to control our own words, spoken or written. We possess the power over our own actions and behavior. We take ownership of what we do and how we act, especially as Christians. Every morning, help us invite Jesus to come along with us in our day, we ask in Jesus' name. Amen
#97 Testimony- A demon-possed student delivered.
Huegel tells of his missionary days in India, students and staff of the girls’ Bible school of another society were praying and fasting for a demon-possed student to be delivered. He was called to help but felt so helpless. As he prayed, he was impressed to go to the struggling, semiconscious girl being held down by several adults as they tried to control her thrashing and jerking.
Huegel called into her ear, “Jai Masih Ki” (victory to Christ), the idiomatic way to say ”Praise the Lord” in her language. As he called this sentence into her ear, she began to respond, as if she could hear what he was saying. Then she struggled to control her locked mouth, and when she finally forced it open, called out after him, “Jai Masih Hi.”
Instantly she was delivered. Prayer and fasting probably helped prepare the way, but praise was the Spirit’s weapon to set her free. Hugel said that “The highest expression of faith is not prayer in its ordinary sense of petition, but prayer in its sublimest expression of praise.”
1521-1525 One-line Scriptures for those of you who want to learn some more verses this week- or to review them from when they were first posted-
1521- Ps. 119:108 “Accept, I beseech thee, the freewill offering of my mouth, O LORD,
and teach me thy judgments.
1522- Is. 14:3a “And it shall come to pass in the day that the LORD shall give thee rest.”
1523- Ps. 147:4 “He knoweth the number of the stars; He calls them all by their names.”
1524- Ps. 18:49 “Therefore I will give thanks to You, O LORD, among the people
and sing praises to Your name.
1525- Is. 42:10a “Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise from the end of
the earth.”
#97 Hymn- Trust And Obey
The information about this song, is taken from the book by Robert J. Morgan, THEN SINGS MY SOUL (pg. 221)
Daniel B. Towner wrote the melody to this song, he inherited his love of music from his father, Professor J. G. Tower, a beloved vocalist and music teacher. Tower traveled with D. L. Moody in the fall of 1885, singing and traveling with Moody, singing and doing personal work. He had the pleasure of singing for him at Brockton, Mass. One night a young man rose in a testimony meeting and said, "I am not quite sure — but I am going to trust, and I am going to obey."
Tower jotted this sentence down and sent it with the little story to Rev. J. H. Sammis, a Presbyterian minister, who wrote a poem based on the phrase and sent it back to Towner, who went to work on the music.
Tower became discouraged and crumpled the paper and threw it in the wastebasket! His wife retrieved it the next morning while cleaning his office, and because it ministered to her, she encouraged him to work on it some more, telling him, "I feel the melody you have written is just what is needed to carry the message." She was right.
Some encouraging words-
Satan can't do a thing to us unless he first gets God's permission. Remember God allowed Satan to test Job. The only time God gives Satan permission is when He sees the tremendous potential in the thing passing through us and coming out as joy, pure joy!
Church Notes:
Guard Your Heart with all Diligence
God transforms us within for protection of wisdom, and to guard our hearts to watch, speak and listen to His wisdom:
1) We’re to wake up to what we are to watch and to see 2) Look up to watch for wisdom
3) Hold onto wisdom in our hearts 4) Speak up and guard what we speak
5) Walk forward, using wisdom to direct our footsteps 6) Our healing comes through following sound wisdom
Upcoming posts:
8/2 (I’m taking the day off to REST)
9th- WHEN DARKNESS CLOSES IN- Martin Wiles
16th- DON'T NEGLECT GOD'S WORD- Phyllis Freeman
Jean's blog (Click to see snippets of the 7 recent posts)
