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GLEANINGS FROM THE WORD Experiencing an extraordinary God in ordinary life Issue 747 March 4, 2003 - Control With this morning being issue 747, I had to mention planes. I've never been a big fan of flying, probably because I don't feel like I have control. The only time I can remember "enjoying" flying were those few occasions where I knew I would be jumping from the plane with a parachute. In those cases, the adrenaline rush overrode any fear factor from the aircraft. Flying doesn't terrify me; I'm just not comfortable flying. Now if you want to terrify me, put me in a small dark place with a big spider and that will get me going every time. Small dark places on their own don't really bother me, and spiders aren't my favourite but on their own, they don't bother me much. Most of us have our own little phobias and fears. Other than the occasionally phobia, I've learned that at the root of things most people seem to fear is a sense of not being able to control the situation. The problem with that is there really isn't much we can control. We can control our own choices to a certain degree, but we're still subject to the weather, the economy, the world political situation and more. We can eat right, get lots of sleep and exercise in an effort to control the length of our lives and get run over by a bus or hit by lightning. None of us can guarantee we'll have a tomorrow. It doesn't matter what your faith background is, no faith can honestly guarantee that you'll still be alive and well on planet earth this time tomorrow. Not having control is not necessarily a bad thing. We can't do anything about yesterday and we can’t guarantee a tomorrow, so we might as well live today to the fullest. I'm not advocating a philosophy of going rampant in sin because you don't know about tomorrow; rather, I'm suggesting we truly live each day. We still need to plan for tomorrow, because for most of us there will be one, but we needn't be obsessive about it. I have met many people who have no life. They are so busy working for the retirement years when they will "relax" that they are killing themselves. Many people get to retirement and find they don’t know what to do with themselves because they didn’t learn to live a little along the way. Share your love. Give to someone in need. Offer a kind word. Share the gospel. Spend some time with family and friends. Pray. Laugh. "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, `What shall we eat?' or `What shall we drink?' or `What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:25-34 NIV The only one who is truly in control is God. Fortunately for you and I, neither you nor I are God. Make the most of each moment. Praise God. Learn to be content whatever circumstances you are in today. Until next time, lighten up, you never were in control anyway. Be blessed Hallelu Yah (Praise God)! Kevin YOU ARE Once you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, you are clay in the hands of the master potter. "O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does?" declares the LORD. "Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. Jeremiah 18:6 Never let the enemy tell you that you are worthless or insignificant. You have value in the eyes of God so great that it was worth dying for. You are a blessing to the world. Have you been putting off getting right with God for just the "right moment"? The moment is now; you may not have a tomorrow to do it in. Grab onto God's grace, love and forgiveness today.
You can simply begin the relationship by honestly and completely opening your heart, admitting you need God's help, and saying a prayer along the lines of: Jesus: I have made many mistakes in my life and done things I am not proud of. I have sinned. I need your love and forgiveness. I believe that you came into this world and gave your life on a cross to pay for my sins and that you defeated death and rose again. Please forgive me, and be the Lord of my life. I give my life to you Lord. Amen If you pray this prayer for the first time let me know so I can rejoice with you. Did you know that at Gleanings, we have a dedicated team of prayer warriors and all prayer concerns are kept strictly confidential? Your comments, your questions and your joys are shared with the prayer team, to keep me accountable as the head of the ministry and to encourage them as they see God at work in your life. As with prayer all these things are kept confidential within the Gleanings team. To share your questions, comments, thoughts, prayer concerns and praise reports email us If you enjoyed this issue of Gleanings From The Word, email it, in its entirety, to a friend. For information on use of Gleanings in your church newsletter or other situations please visit the permissions page . You can write to us at Gleanings From The Word Ministries International 114 Oak St Sherwood Park, AB Canada T8A 0V8 © 2003 K.F. "Kevin" Corbin Gleanings From The Word Minististries International - All Rights Reserved
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