Reason to Pray  #1: You are NOT in Control

I went to Dallas recently I went to the Village Church where I heard Matt Chandler preach. He was preaching on a biblical perspective of death that weekend. One thing I was reminded of is “Control is an illusion.” We are not in control, despite what we think? In fact the things we are in control of are so insignificant that they seem to make little difference when it comes to eternity.

I know, you are yelling at me right now, “BUT I AM IN CONTROL OF MY LIFE!” Ok lets slow down here. When we stop and think about it, we are in control of a lot less than we claim. Most of the big stuff in life we are not in control at all. Most of the time the things we claim to be in control of can hardly be classified as “control”.

Here is what I’m NOT in control of…

• I was not in control of when I was born.
• I was not in control of where I was born.
• I was not in control of who I was born too.
• I was not in control of the color of my skin, hair, eyes, etc.
• I am not in control of whether I get a disease or not.
• I am not in control of when I die.
• I am not in control of my children’s future.
• I am not in control of what other people think of me.
• I am not in control of the church’s growth.
• I am not in control of what my wife does.
• I am not in control of other drivers on the road.
• I am not in control of whether people trust Jesus or not.
• I am not in control of how this little article influences you.
• I am not in control of whether you develop a more effective time of prayer or not.
• I am not in control of much really?

(Now I have influence in much of this, but control is just not the right word)

So why am I telling you this? Is this news really helpful?

I’m telling you this because it IS helpful. It is helpful in our dependence on God. God is in control and we are not. The sooner we admit this, the sooner we will develop a better prayer life.

Pray because God is in control not you!