The Art of the Response
Everybody personally knows at least one person in their life who fits the criteria of a "control freak". If a handful of you are truly honest, you would be willing to admit that you land in that category as well.
I used to think that I didn't fit in that category, but the more years I add to my life, the more I realize how many ways that this description applies to me. It is most definitely humbling, but I believe it is that which humbles us that causes us to experience personal growth.
I love the concept of friendships/relationships. There is no more beautiful of an experience than two people who take turns giving and taking, which in turn forms a tapestry of understanding, love and endless opportunities to learn and grow as an individual. A very large part of a relationship is the concept of the response. Without the personal verbal and/or physical response of one individual to another, there would be no relationship. Having the ability to respond to our environment is one of the many ways that God continues to show us that we are living, breathing human beings. Have you ever temporarily lost your voice? It is a terrible feeling to not be able to respond verbally in a way that accurately depicts how you feel and/or think about something.
There is great freedom in responding. How you choose to respond is entirely up to you; nobody else can do it for you. Along with the freedom of personal response comes the reality that we have absolutely no control over how someone chooses to respond to us. This is an area of relationships that I trust my God is refining in me. I pay great attention to how I respond to people. I usually take time to word and articulate things exactly the way I want them to come across, and for some odd reason, I think that if I respond to someone in a certain way and with a concerted amount of effort, that their response should be equal or above what I believe to be reproach. When they don't respond in the way that I expect, I take it personally in some way, even though there was most likely no reason to feel that way.
Our relationship with Jesus Christ is no different. We can come to Him with petitions of praise, requests, frustrations and concerns, but we have no control in how God is going to choose to answer those prayers or reveal Himself to us. Our relationship with God and the response we give Him takes a very serious amount of trust and faith. The central difference between the response of God to His children and human relationships is that we can be certain that God's response to us will never harm or hurt us. We can rest assured that God's response to His children will always be exactly what we need at exactly the right time. Even when we don't understand why He is responding in the way that He is; Whether that takes the form of a response that you didn't want or expect, or what appears to be no response at all, we can take hold of the promise that not having control over His response shouldn't create anxiety, but should create peace.
It is absolutely imperative that we have a basic, solid understanding of clearly knowing what we do and do not have control over. Once we can identify these things, the need for control over everything begins to pale in comparison to the peace that can be experienced when we are responsible for what is ours, leaving the rest up to God. So whether it be something as silly as a person who brought eleven items to the "10 items or less" lane, or something as detrimental to the heart as feeling hurt by the way a loved one has responded to us, we can have that peace. God is handing this special gift to us, we just need to take it.
I used to think that I didn't fit in that category, but the more years I add to my life, the more I realize how many ways that this description applies to me. It is most definitely humbling, but I believe it is that which humbles us that causes us to experience personal growth.
I love the concept of friendships/relationships. There is no more beautiful of an experience than two people who take turns giving and taking, which in turn forms a tapestry of understanding, love and endless opportunities to learn and grow as an individual. A very large part of a relationship is the concept of the response. Without the personal verbal and/or physical response of one individual to another, there would be no relationship. Having the ability to respond to our environment is one of the many ways that God continues to show us that we are living, breathing human beings. Have you ever temporarily lost your voice? It is a terrible feeling to not be able to respond verbally in a way that accurately depicts how you feel and/or think about something.
There is great freedom in responding. How you choose to respond is entirely up to you; nobody else can do it for you. Along with the freedom of personal response comes the reality that we have absolutely no control over how someone chooses to respond to us. This is an area of relationships that I trust my God is refining in me. I pay great attention to how I respond to people. I usually take time to word and articulate things exactly the way I want them to come across, and for some odd reason, I think that if I respond to someone in a certain way and with a concerted amount of effort, that their response should be equal or above what I believe to be reproach. When they don't respond in the way that I expect, I take it personally in some way, even though there was most likely no reason to feel that way.
Our relationship with Jesus Christ is no different. We can come to Him with petitions of praise, requests, frustrations and concerns, but we have no control in how God is going to choose to answer those prayers or reveal Himself to us. Our relationship with God and the response we give Him takes a very serious amount of trust and faith. The central difference between the response of God to His children and human relationships is that we can be certain that God's response to us will never harm or hurt us. We can rest assured that God's response to His children will always be exactly what we need at exactly the right time. Even when we don't understand why He is responding in the way that He is; Whether that takes the form of a response that you didn't want or expect, or what appears to be no response at all, we can take hold of the promise that not having control over His response shouldn't create anxiety, but should create peace.
A prayer that is very near and dear to my heart is the "Serenity Prayer". I'm sure many of you are familiar with the simple, yet profound prayer.
"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change
Give me the courage to change the things that I can
And the wisdom to know the difference."
It is absolutely imperative that we have a basic, solid understanding of clearly knowing what we do and do not have control over. Once we can identify these things, the need for control over everything begins to pale in comparison to the peace that can be experienced when we are responsible for what is ours, leaving the rest up to God. So whether it be something as silly as a person who brought eleven items to the "10 items or less" lane, or something as detrimental to the heart as feeling hurt by the way a loved one has responded to us, we can have that peace. God is handing this special gift to us, we just need to take it.
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