Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Delusions of Personal Sovereignty

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“Delusions of Personal Sovereignty”

            Recently while reading a book on handling the crazy makers in our lives, I came across a statement that rocked my soul and I knew I would be sharing it with those I love. The first person I called was our daughter. I was telling her that I daily acknowledge my propensity to anxiety and control but I now see more clearly the WHY of my Default setting on anxiety and control. So what was the quote that caused a fresh epiphany?  Drum roll:

“Control is a tranquilizer for the anxious person.”

I pondered that thought a long time before I called Jessi. How simple to realize that the moment I become anxious, I put on my junior-god badge button and become a Control Freak. The more anxious I am, the more controlling I am! How ironic that God’s Word clearly states: “Be anxious for NOTHING…” which would guide one to the parallel reality of WHO is in control and who isn’t! As Jessi pondered what I shared, later in the day she emailed me the following:

Many of your struggles are often the result of a collision between your plans and God's. Although you knew exactly what you wanted to accomplish and those things that you were determined to avoid, your life didn't unfold as you planned. In some scenarios, it seems as if life is totally out of your control. But, you must rest in the fact that every situation, circumstance, location, experience, and relationship of your life has been under the wise and careful administration of the Lord Almighty .He has known from the beginning exactly what He was going to do and exactly why He did it. From His vantage point there are no slip-ups, no oversights, no accidents, no misunderstandings, and no mistakes. Nothing has fallen through the cracks. Let's go back to Psalm 139: "All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be" (Psalm 139:16b).

There's a direct connection between delusions of personal sovereignty and the crushing disappointments that grip us in life. We forget who we are and begin to believe that our hands are really the hands on the joystick. We work with dedication and perseverance, but we work like little sovereigns, rather than resting in the One who is sovereign. God is sovereign. You and I are not. (Paul Trip Blog, Feb.20th)

“Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there we none of them.”(Psalm 139:16)

May this scripture be a friendly reminder of God’s intricate plan for our lives. It is a reminder to me of the silliness of my delusion personal sovereignty and my need to resist using the tranquilizer of control.