Truth Be Told: A Six-Day Devotional by Matthew Westنموونە

Day 3

Lie #3: You've got this. 

Truth be told: He’s got this.

So, I've got a friend who was a meteorologist. He studied and reported the weather on a major local news station here in Nashville.  One time, I jokingly asked him if people ever get mad at him when the weather forecast winds up being wrong. He said, “Boy, do they ever!” He proceeded to recite some of his hate mail. “Dear Weatherman, how dare you predict sunny with a high of 75. It rained the entire day of my daughter's wedding. I blame you. Dear Weatherman, you wouldn't know a sunny day if it hit you in the face. Dear Weatherman, I hope a bird poops on your car.” (Now, that last one was actually from me after it rained during my vacation). He even said there were times when people noticed him on the street on a day that shaped up to be different from his forecast and they would point to the sky with a frustrated look on their face as if to say, “Nice going, really nailed this one.” Funny thing about my meteorologist friend - he's now in the real estate business. True story! Over dinner, I asked him if he missed reporting the weather. His response was unintentionally profound. He said, “For so long, I was studying the weather because it was my job but now, I love it again like I used to as a kid.” He said, “I get a kick out of going out in the fields and seeing the storm clouds rolling in. These days, I just enjoy watching the weather change.” My friend's unique take on the change in weather got me thinking. It was no longer his job to predict the weather, or whether or not the weather would change. (Say that sentence five times fast!)  It wasn't up to him to decide if people should stay inside because of a snowstorm approaching or if a family should grab their swimsuits and head to the pool. He was off the hook. 

Well, I've got great news for you. We're off the hook, too. It's not our responsibility to predict or control the changes in our daily circumstances. It never has been. The One who decides where lightning will strike and how much rain will fall is the same One who controls your life and this changing world in which we live.  You've heard the phrase, “A bird's-eye view.” That describes having a view from above. There ain't a bird around that could fly high enough to see all that God sees. He's the only one with the God's-eye view, not the bird’s, not me, and not you. Isaiah 55:9 says, “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Those things that catch us off guard are never a surprise to God. His knowledge is limitless. He's aware of all things at all times. His understanding is infinite. When life is derailed by an unexpected detour, God's not looking down from Heaven thinking, “Wow, I didn't see that one coming!” What a comforting thought that should be for us now. If we acknowledge God as all-knowing and in control then we have to, at the same time, acknowledge that we are none of those things. We can't have it both ways. I can't say, “God, I trust you,” and then turn around and frantically try to maintain control over my life.

I think many of us engage in a constant tug of war between total control and total surrender. We raise our hands in worship. We worship the God who is above it all, but our fists are clenched, hanging on for dear life just in case God drops the ball. Someone once said, “I'm not really a control freak, but can I show you the right way to do that?” That's me. Often, I'm a control freak, foolishly trying to conduct the orchestrator of the entire universe. I live as if I'm saying, “Hey God, listen, I know that you're the one who can move Heaven and Earth, but I was thinking, you should just move this just a little to the left.” God isn't sitting in Heaven waiting for me to weigh in on the subject of my life before deciding which direction it should go. From God's-eye view, He sees it all and He's in control of it all. He's got this. 

Truth be told, the chaos of our world right now has brought this control freak to his knees, but I’m finding out that's not such a bad place to be. I'm learning to live my life not with clenched fists, but without outstretched arms giving up control to the One who's really in control. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out - plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.”  You can loosen your grip now. No matter what the situation you find yourself in, God's got this and you can trust Him. That's the truth.

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I don't know why it's so hard to admit it 

When being honest is

The only way to fix it 

There's no failure, no fault,

There's no sin you don't already know

So, let the truth be told