Thy Will Be Done

It’s natural to want to be in control—to have other people and even God do what we want to have them do. But what does God want?

In the past few months I’ve asked myself questions like, why does life have to be so dependent upon other people? If I were in complete control of everything around me, my life would be so much simpler!

I realize this is wrong thinking and is full of pride, vanity and ego—in a word, selfishness. Nevertheless, there must be some level of control in our lives.

Let’s consider two types of control—self-control and the control of others.

Self-control

The Bible discusses quite a bit about the importance of self-control. It’s a fruit of God’s Spirit working in our lives. We are told to control ourselves and to rule over our bodies and the decisions and actions we take.

We are warned about sin. God told Cain: “Sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it” (Genesis 4:7). Sin has an appetite that is never satisfied. It is like a parasite that will never stop unless we take control and stop it. That’s one of the lessons in preparing for the biblical Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Trying to control others

But what about controlling others? We can all slip into the desire to control others. It seems it would make our lives much easier if people would do what we want them to do, and it seems to infuriate us and make our lives more difficult when they won’t.

The controlling spirit stems from the pride of life. It comes from immaturity and insecurity. People try to control others through fear. The controlling spirit also uses manipulation to accomplish its purposes. Manipulation is trickery and deception. It is self-centered and has nothing to do with godly character and outgoing concern. It is a matter of our ego.

The controlling spirit says that if I can be in control, then nobody will hurt me and I will be satisfied. The focus is completely on the self. The controlling person sees no need to adjust or sacrifice or be selfless. Control feeds selfishness. It is all about me getting what I want the way I want it. Nobody is going to tell me what to do. That frame of mind is rebellious and comes from the mind of Satan.

What gives us the right to control others? God, out of His love and as part of His marvelous plan, grants to each individual the ability to freely choose. Who are we to undermine the plan of God? When people try to control others, they are, in a sense, putting themselves in the position of God. But who has ultimate control?

Trying to control God?

We can even fall into the trap of trying to control God and tell Him what to do. We try to get Him to bend to our will when we should be bending to His will. Man is nothing compared to God. All too often when we pray we try to get God to conform to what we want. “Help me, God; help me do this or that which I want to do, God.” How often do we pray for God to help us do what He wants us to do? How often do we seek to conform to His will?

We are just clay in the hands of the Potter. What right do we have to attempt to alter the plan of God? God does not need us! God wants us! It is out of His love and mercy that we even draw breath. If He did not want us, we would not be here!

But God does not need us. He was around long before we were! We cannot even fathom that. Regardless of what we decide, God’s will will be done. We have to accept God’s will and submit to it. We have to think the way God thinks. We have to accept His answers to our prayers with a right attitude. We need to believe and trust Him.

We cannot try to make God fit inside our box. Our plans must conform to the will of God. He has every right to interrupt our plans for the sake of His.

Life is about relationships. It is not our job or responsibility to control someone else. We have to learn to submit to others and to approach their independent decisions in the right way.

Jesus Christ’s teaching and example is that it is not about us! What did He say in the garden when He knew what was expected of Him? “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done” (Luke 22:42).

His focus was not on Himself, but on God and on the good of mankind. Because of that, we can be saved by His great love.

Johnathan Armstrong attends the Little Rock, Arkansas, congregation of the Church of God, a Worldwide Association, and is a graduate student working on his doctorate in physics.

For more about self-control and God’s will, see:

• Temptations: Why Did I Want That Useless Piece of Plastic?
• Asking God His Will: Are You Making the Right Choices?
• The Relationship of the Potter and the Clay