Losing Control

Yesterday, we stopped to pick up lunch on the way to visit my in-laws. The elderly man ordering in front of me struggled to speak. Each word a quiet, halting labor. At one point he pounded a fist on the counter, not in anger at the cashier but in frustration.

I imagined he had once been a strong, sure man in control of not only his speech but his life.

Yet there he stood with the knowledge and experience of decades on earth and he struggled to order a soft drink.

This week I've thought a lot about control. We (I) hold on tight to what little control we have as if we do not believe anyone else can do the job as well as we can.

Read that one again. ☝️

Rubs a little, doesn't it?

How arrogant of us to believe if we allow someone to do the work it'll never be done "right" or maybe not at all? And letting go, especially of something that matters so much to us or mattered so much to us at one time, is hard.

I'm holding on to my children's childhood and their future so hard my knuckles have turned white and I'll likely look feeling in my fingers soon. Sooner, rather than later, I'm going to have to let go. We all do.

And guess what? Sometimes our kids or our co-workers or our body won't do what we wanted it to do. It will hurt, maybe deeply.

But God has given us a promise for those difficult moments whether by letting go of control or being forced out of control. He will be with us. And He has overcome the world! Take heart, my friend!

He is in control even when we are not. What a blessed assurance.

I hope this week's Memory Verse Challenge seeps deep into your soul to bring peace and reassurance for whatever trial you may face.

Download the images below to use as your phone screen saver or on social media. And you can find memory verse aids here.