Something to Think About: God in Control

Something to Think About: God in Control

Reflections by Chuck Cluff, Atherton resident since 2004

Matthew 6:10

Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

In spite of all the negativity hitting us daily in the news, believers say “God is in control”. What does that mean – that God is responsible for today’s conditions? Not really.

Being in control doesn’t mean doing everything. A CEO puts others in charge of all sorts of jobs. The one in control might be able to do the best job, but the vast amount of responsibilities leave him having to trust another who hopefully will do it right.

Our Creator is in control of who he designates responsibility to, how much he will intervene and when he will step in and take over if necessary. Not everyone God picks does well. The Bible gives examples of God trusting people who turned out to be a disappointment; in the heavens and on earth. History supplies us with many who could and should have done better. It is no mystery what responsibilities God has put us in charge of; ourselves, those around us and the environment in which we live. That’s it in a nut shell. Simple. And Jesus is the best example of how that plays out in everyday life. His perfect self-development and composure due to his oneness with God, living for and giving to others and respecting nature has never been surpassed.

God is overall in control but not personally in charge of everything and doesn’t want to be. Why would anyone want to do everything? God loves to share responsibility and doesn’t seem to want to take on what another can do, even if serious mistakes might be made along the way. And, this is why everything isn’t perfect. Mistakes have been and are being made by those God has let be in charge. Some mistakes have been very costly, with hurtful ramifications for many people. How sad what God’s creatures do to each other.

It is important to God that we make our own decisions and thus be part of our own becoming; even if we don’t always get it right the first time, even as we have to live with what we do to ourselves and others. Hopefully we learn from these mistakes and the delays they cause, which is better than doing nothing and not growing. We want to be faithfully in charge of the responsibilities the one in control has given us. This is our part of bringing God’s will down to where we live.