Reflection
Last week, while our car was in for service, I took an Uber to a meeting twenty miles away.
As I slowly tucked my long legs into the back of a small sedan, I noticed the front seat was crammed with stuff: a plant, a large stuffed animal. I asked my usual question: “How are you doing?”
“Horrible,” he said. “I left my girlfriend this morning. She’s a control freak.”
The ride flew by as he shared multiple control-related stories. When we pulled up, I offered him a little “Jay psychology”: control is usually a symptom of insecurity; he’d probably made a good decision, and his days would get better. He said, “I’m already feeling better.”
I used to struggle with controlling everything until I lost control of everything.
Control is seductive. It whispers that if we plan, worry, and manage enough, everything will work out. Then life reminds us otherwise…and for an addict, when it doesn’t work out, we just get high and numb ourselves to reality.
Recovery taught me something I keep having to relearn: there is a God, and I’m not Him. My job is to do the next right thing. God’s job is everything else.
There’s tremendous freedom in knowing the difference.
And that brings me back to autumn. Trees don’t fight the changing season. They let go of their leaves, but not before those leaves blaze into reds, oranges, and golds. The letting go is beautiful, and it isn’t the end. By releasing what it can’t hold onto, the tree is quietly preparing for new life just a few months away.
Soul Search
What am I trying to control today that actually belongs in God’s hands?
“Be still, and know that I am God.” — Psalm 46:10
P.E.A.C.E.
Jay@EagleLaunch.com
