Adam, the Original Control Freak

I think one of the most difficult things about leading a Christian life is “giving it up to God”. I don’t think I can think of a single person who doesn’t struggle with that to some extent.

I thought about it this weekend when my daughter called home from campus. She was so frustrated because a few of her friends were making decisions she felt were leading them down the wrong path. She couldn’t understand why this kept happening, when she prayed for them so often. I tried to help her understand that we have to accept God’s will and God’s time in these things. It might be ten years before that person turns around, but He knows when the time is right for them.

I feel her pain. I pray constantly for our fifteen-year-old, who has found wiccan to be a wonderful alternative to Christianity. It has been so upsetting that my anxiety level has been high, but I realize that anxiety is my lack of letting God work in His way. Just like my daughter, I confess I would love to see this problem go away now, not in five years. But maybe a longer struggle will give him a stronger faith later....that is something we cannot know.

I think the “control freak” syndrome is a major factor in the decision for many to become agnostic or atheist. I believe many atheists find it asking too much to believe in a God that would have them give up the power.

Isn’t this true for many New Age, wiccan and pagan followers as well? Meditation, channeling, spells and rituals all give the sense of control.

Adam was clearly the first “control freak” when he could not pass up a chance at having the knowledge that God possessed. With all that he had, there was still that element of control that God had not shared with him.

The more conscious we become of this, the more we can work on letting go of the control and allowing God to take us the way He would have us go. It’s like the “ropes” exercises, isn’t it? It’s like closing your eyes, falling back and having the faith that you will be caught.