Even though you had to move for your job. Even though your church had to close its doors. Even though your health isn’t where you want it to be. Even though your best friends moved away. Even though your job isn’t what you thought it would be. Even though these things happen, do you still believe that God is in control?
Through many tough times, my faith in God has served as my unshakeable foundation. But sometimes I still find myself questioning if God is in control and if His will stands. Does God even have a plan for me? If so, why hasn’t he revealed it to me yet?
Can you relate? Then this article about understanding how God is in control is for both of us.
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Who is in control?
When I originally put this topic into my content plan for the year, I thought I would be writing it with a more “lessons learned” mentality. But instead of being on the other side of a life storm, I feel like I’m right in the thick of it.
The phrase “God is in control” hasn’t been hitting home for me like it used to, and I know it’s because my Christian walk is no longer nice and sunny. Now that the storm has hit and chaos persists in the world, I’m struggling to remember who is in control.
So since I’m doubting that God is in control, and I know I’m not letting Him be in control of my life either. Instead, I’m trying to control it.
Trying to be in Control of My life
Before this coronavirus crisis happened, I guided my life with a very detailed schedule of how I wanted to spend my time. It was my way of taking control of my life, spending my energy on only essential things, and maximizing the use of my time.
But then the pandemic hit, and half of the things on my detailed schedule were suddenly impossible. My plans were torn to utter pieces.
Naturally, I was upset. I felt like I deserved a warning, a get-out-of-jail free card, or an exemption. Like, God, could you give a sister in Christ a warning? I made all of these grand plans and the coronavirus tore them up…
Or actually, God allowed the coronavirus to tear them up.
(If this was your reality, I recommend making a gratitude journal because being thankful can do wonders and help you find joy in the rain.)
Me Vs. God in control of my life
Fast forward to now. While I thought I had recovered from this sudden loss of control, I realized lately that I’m still trying to control other areas of my life. I’m micromanaging myself, my job, my expectations, my health, my social life, my future, other people.
And while the sense of control is comforting, it’s short-lived as life throws another punch and the rug is ripped out from underneath me…again.
As I write this post, I realize now that when I have control of my life, it is only an illusion. It’s comforting, but not secure.
But when God is in control of my life, and I let him take the reins…well, what could surprise Him? God knew the coronavirus was coming. God knew what challenges I would face this past year.
So, the only person who can really take everything in stride is God.
Meaning of God Is in Control
That being said, I still have trouble believing this phrase in my heart when things go awry. And of course the examples everyone can relate to–the coronavirus pandemic. It was something that was (and still is) unexpected, unprecedented, and unpredictable. Everyone took a hit in some area of their life, whether physically, mentally, socially, or economically. We all had to adjust our plans to fit into a world that was changed because of this “quarantine life.”
But do you think God changed his plans? Did He look down on earth as things started shutting down and grab His notebook to make changes to His plans?
No, because God was (and still is) in control.
The coronavirus did not surprise God. It did not catch him off guard. It was not unexpected for Him like it was for us. So if it didn’t surprise Him, then that also means that He was not reacting to it, adjusting His plans, or tweaking details in His grand-scheme-of-things plan.
God knew from the beginning of time, for forever, that the coronavirus COVID-19 would hit the world like it has. It was already in His plan and under His sovereign control. That’s the meaning of “God is in control.”
So, is God in Control or in Charge?
The answer is both. God is in control, and He’s in charge. The truth that God is in control speaks to His omniscient (all-knowing), omnipotent (all-powerful), and omnipresent (always-present) nature. Because He is those things, we can rest assured that He is always in control.
Nothing comes to Earth or to us without passing through God’s hand first.
God is also in charge. He created us and the world that we live in. So, yes, as our creator, God is in charge of our world and our lives. I’d say it’s not a “charge” that He takes lightly, not since he sent Jesus Christ, His son, to die for our sins and make dwelling with God a possibility.
As King of Kings and Lord of Lords, God sent His son to us so that we may know God and be in relationship with Him.
He’s graciously given us the Bible to show us how to live our lives for Him, according to His statutes. From the Bible, we can also understand the sovereignty of God’s will, which is key to knowing in our hearts that God is in control and in charge. Once we know that in our hearts, we can overcome fear and have the confidence to live as godly women.
Our Sovereign God at the Wheel
In addition to who is in charge, here are some other frequent questions about God being in control. I’ve paired Bible verses with each question to remind and encourage us when the world seems chaotic and we may be discouraged. No matter what, God is still in control!
(Anyone else thinking of the song, “Jesus Take the Wheel” by Carrie Underwood?)
Who can stop the Lord?
Since God is all-powerful, we can rest in the truth that no man, king, ruler, kingdom, or false god will ever overcome Him.No one can stop the Lord. The Bible says in Deuteronomy 32:39:
“‘See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god beside me; I kill and I make alive; I wound and I heal; and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.”
Deuteronomy 32:39
In Proverbs, King Solomon also tells us that no amount of intelligence or worldly wisdom can compete with the Lord. Even these intangible things cannot stop the Lord.
“No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel can avail against the Lord.”
Proverbs 21:30
So in summary, because of the sovereignty of God and the fact that He’s sovereign over all things, no one can stop or altar the will of God. Just like when the pandemic struck, God’s plan and purposes for our lives were not stopped.
What God has ordained who can stop?
While this question plays a lot off of the previous, I believe it deserves its own spotlight to remind us of the sovereignty of God’s will and plan for our lives. A couple of weeks ago, my pastor talked about divine destiny and distinguished it from the “happenstance” worldly definition of the word. This question speaks to that difference perfectly because it’s not just “luck” or “chance” that God has planted us where we are or allowed certain things into our lives.
Why? Because what God has ordained no one can stop!
By nature, God is omnipresent (always-present), omnipotent (all-powerful), and omniscient (all-knowing). Having these traits and being the sole being with these traits, God is sovereign over all things. What He has ordained or designated as His will, no one can stop.
Many Bible stories depict the story of God’s sovereignty, but the first that comes to my mind is Jesus’s birth. Jesus Christ came into the world for us, sinners, to set us free and cleanse us of our sins.
But in Matthew 2, Satan through King Herod tried to ruin God’s redemptive plan. Herod had plotted to the kill Jesus as soon as the wise men gave him Jesus’s location. But God’s plan could not be stopped, and God gave the wise men a vision telling them not to return to King Herod.
In his power and sovereignty, God’s will cannot be stopped. And for that, I am extremely thankful, for it is only by God’s will that I am able to dwell with Him through Jesus Christ.
Can God’s plan be thwarted? (by me?)
This last question is nearest and dearest to my heart. You see, my plans may frequently fail me, but I need to remind myself that God’s plans and purposes never will. In Job, the Bible says clearly that God’s plans cannot be thwarted.
“I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.”
Job 42:2
And that being said, neither can we “ruin” God’s plan. I used to be concerned that I would royally screw up in some way, and God would have to start from scratch on His plan for me. Now, looking back on everything God has taught me about His will and sovereignty, I must think pretty highly of myself to think that I could mess up God’s plan.
Because even when God created us, He knew that we would turn away from Him and sin against Him. He knew every single awful, rebellious thing that we would do, and yet He still created us anyway.
He knew that He would have to send His son Jesus Christ to the cross in order to redeem us, and yet He still chose us.
Kara J Lovett Co.
If sin couldn’t mess up God’s plan in the Garden of Eden, then nothing—not even a global pandemic–will mess up His plan for our lives either. We just have to let bygones be bygones and relinquish our own plans. Only then can we embrace the calling that God has placed on our lives.
God is Always in Control
At the beginning of this article, I mentioned that I was struggling with believing God is in control. But after delving into scriptures about God’s sovereignty and God’s will, I realize that the root of my struggle is in my heart. I am discouraged by my circumstances and confused as to why God hasn’t flexed his all-powerful might and freed me from those circumstances.
If God is in control, then why are these bad things happening to me? And happening around me?
The story of Joseph came to my mind then. Joseph’s brothers sell him into slavery, and later Joseph spends several years in prison, too. But through all of those things, God had ordained a sovereign plan to save Jacob, his family, and the future nation of Israel through Joseph.
“But Joseph said to them, “Do not fear, for am I in the place of God?As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today. “
Genesis 50:19-20
Though Joseph suffered a lot of heartache, God allowed it for a specific purpose. God was glorified through the situation and the Israelite nation became fruitful, eventually producing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
God is in Control of My Life
So while I may not like how the will of God is being manifested in my life right now, I know God is in control and He is allowing it for a specific reason. It’s just a reason I can’t see yet, but He promises in Romans 8, that it will be for my good and it will make me more like Jesus Christ.
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”
Romans 8:28-30
So, we can rest assured that God is in control. He is sovereign, His will cannot be thwarted, and above all, He loves you and wants you to know Him (John 3:16-17). Whatever life throws your way, these truths will always remain. Be brave!
How has knowing God is in control comforted you?
Leave me a comment below!
Don’t miss this! More posts in the Growing in Faith Category:
- 5 Keys to Accepting God’s Love
- 42 Bible Verses about being a God-fearing Woman
- Lessons & Stories to Unlock the Power of Prayer
- 5 Strategies for How to Remove Fear from Mind and Heart
- How to Make a Gratitude Journal
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