Gratitude Day 514

Wed., Sept. 23, 2020

Luke 12:22a: Jesus taught his disciples, saying, “Listen to me. Never let anxiety enter your hearts. Never worry about any of your needs,”

There are only so many things in this life that I can control.

Most often, it’s just the things within my tiny little realm of control: what I eat, wear, say and believe.

Most of the time, I can control what I do. Other times, I feel I don’t have an option.

Oh, and I control how I react. When something good happens. When something makes me sad. When someone says something to me. When life throws me a curve ball and I just want to scream, “God are You down here? If so, could you please be a little more obvious?”

And then, there are a whole bunch of things I cannot control. As much as I would love to take over and wrestle control away from someone else, it’s simply not up to me.

I can’t decide something for Hubby Rick. I can highly suggest … but that’s it. I can’t tell someone else what to do and expect them to do what I think is best.

I can’t make someone else’s choices. I can’t fix someone’s addiction. I can’t repair a challenged marriage. I can’t mend a severed relationship.

Nope, I can’t do any of these things.

What can I do?

Pray. Ask God to intervene. And pray some more.

And control what I can control: keep faith in God, humanity and myself. Discern when to speak and when to listen. Make sure my words are as encouraging as they can be. Slow down and experience life rather than charge through it. Life as Jesus taught me to live.

That’s about it.

Oh, and give the rest to God.

For a reminder to focus only on what I can control, I am grateful.

Almighty God – So often, we want to control things that aren’t ours to control. We want to take control of a situation because we’re convinced that we know best … when we may not. Rather than putting so much energy into things I can’t control, encourage me to focus on what I can control. Amen.

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