Control Freak (Part 1) – Talent and Riches ... Burden or Blessing

Why do I compulsively try to control that which I have no hope of controlling? I have this belief that I can control things. However, there is little evidence to suggest that this is true. However, my mind is inclined to believe that it is logical to assume that one can control the outcome of situations by controlling as many details as possible. However, this notion is flawed from the standpoint that if you miss just one detail, the whole house of cards comes crashing down. And this is why you cannot control the outcomes of things. You cannot control every detail. Some things I work at actually work out as I expected. Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every once in a while. You were fortunate. Good fortune, luck, blessing … whatever you want to label it, is not very helpful in this regard. It leaves us with a sense that we did it. We controlled the outcome. It is a lie. Ultimately our success was from God. God lined up the circumstances and we knocked it down. But, we tend to believe that we did it by working hard and crossing every “T” and dotting every “I”. This is where the problem is. We do not recognize that were not responsible for the outcome. So why work hard at an outcome? Because it is our responsibility to do so. We cannot control the outcome, but we can control our level of commitment to a desired outcome.

Talent is a two edged sword as well. We get it from God. But, few of us really subject our use of these talents to God. We are selfish and use the gifts for personal gain. Of course sometimes we do use them as we should, but by and large we use them for selfish gain. Just like being rich financially is really a burden more than it is a blessing, so I believe is talent. Both cloak us in the delusion that we are in control. Both deceive us into thinking we are “self” sufficient. Both lead us away from God. The test is if we will allow such a deception to continue, or will we do anything about it. Will we stay trapped in the gilded cage of “blessing” or will we rise up against “self” and put the focus back on God and His intentions. God did have a plan for you when He blessed you. Are you living up to His expectations? Or, are you following your own path enabled by the fuel of God’s blessing on your life? I believe that, for the latter, there will be a rude awakening on that faithful day. To whom much is given, much is required. When you have been given much, God will expect that you will have done something equal to the blessing. The question is, how do you think God will evaluate your success? Do God and man see things the same way? Is it possible that your definition of “success” and Gods are entirely different? When you ponder these questions, think about this, if God views success differently then we do, then, will not God also be looking at the outcomes in a different way as well?