I Need You More

I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!  Psalm 27: 13 - 14

It’s in the nature of man to be independent.  We take pride in our accomplishments and want to feel like we are in control. Admittedly many Christians struggle with letting go of the control in their lives.  Some of us struggle in a cycle of ‘control’... we get ‘overwhelmed’, then ‘release control’ to God. Then we go back to ‘control’ and ‘our failed plans’, only to go back to giving God control again.  

If this describes your life, you are in good company.  We see this same cycle in the life of Abraham.  He was known for his great faith and as a friend of God.  Even though the comparison to Abraham can be very flattering, this cycle of control leads to disappointments, sin and lifelong problems.  I’m sure Abraham would agree that it is not a healthy cycle.  

In Genesis we read about how Abraham took off and followed God without reservation.  Day by day, he let God lead him and Sarah. In fact, God had promised to make him a great nation and said to him…”I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you.”  Life was good until he went down to Egypt.  Then he quickly forgot God’s promises and told Sarah to say she was his sister if anyone asked. (Genesis 12) It was only a half lie!  He did this again to King Abimelech (Genesis 20 - 21)  Later his son, Isaac told this same lie when he was afraid.  

Again, when God’s promise of offspring was not happening as Abram thought it should, Abram and Sarah tried to work it out for God with Sarah’s handmaiden. Control. None of us are immune.  We are quick to rationalize how we can help God accomplish ‘His plan’ for our lives.  I think every time we take control it is like we clog the drain and everything gets backed up until we find ourselves yelling, “Help God!  Get me out of this mess!”  Everything was going so smoothly, until something scared us; or maybe we just thought we would give God a break since things were going so well.  Whatever the rationale, we take over and a clog is formed!!  God takes joy in walking with us, leading us and showing His mighty power when we hit obstacles. 

A while ago, I was watching my grandson.  My son was starting a new business and on that day everything was going wrong for my son.  He knew he was following God’s plan, but everything was falling apart. And I knew without the intervention of God, his business would start off in failure.  I began to think about the next few weeks and realized that there were a lot of challenges ahead.  As an ‘experienced’ mother, I went into problem solving mode!  Yes, I went into ‘control’ mode.  But I couldn’t fix it. It was beyond even my ‘Super Mom’ capabilities. I felt helpless and anxious. I was holding my precious grandson Asher, when I began to cry out to God in my Spirit.  Almost immediately I felt like the Lord put a song in my Spirit, “I Need You More” by Chris Tomlin.  As I sang that song, the presence of the Lord filled the room and Asher fell asleep in my arms.  Since that day, my son’s business has been very successful, though trials are still coming and going. God is in control. Unfortunately, it was only after I realized that ‘Super Mom’ was powerless that I began to pray.  I’m so thankful I couldn’t fix it.  

In our own strength we will make the mess bigger and we make God seem powerless.  In reality, we are binding His hands as we take control with our hands.  I hate the thought that I would make my great God seem powerless, and yet everytime we take control, we make our God seem powerless. I am grieved by the realization of how often I’ve taken control and made my God look powerless. Let our lives bring our creative, powerful, forgiving, mighty, merciful and loving God glory.  Give God control over your life and be a testimony for Him.  Let the whole world see Christ, not you.  Our God is powerful! Let’s submit to His authority and let the world see OUR GOD instead of us.

Don’t lose heart, we will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.  Wait on the Lord, Don’t take control!  Take Courage!  The Lord will strengthen your heart!  Wait on the Lord