Control

Now Abraham was old, well advanced in years; and the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things. Abraham said to his servant, the oldest of his house, who had charge of all that he had, "Put your hand under my thigh and I will make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I live, but will go to my country and to my kindred and get a wife for my son Isaac." The servant said to him, "Perhaps the woman may not be willing to follow me to this land; must I then take your son back to the land from which you came?"

 Abraham said to him, "See to it that you do not take my son back there. The LORD, the God of heaven, who took me from my father's house and from the land of my birth, and who spoke to me and swore to me, 'To your offspring I will give this land,' he will send his angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. But if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you will be free from this oath of mine; only you must not take my son back there." So the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master and swore to him concerning this matter. ~ Genesis 24:1-9
We are all partisans in the perennial human rebellion against God. We revel in our personal sovereignty and unbridled freedom. - UCC Pastor Richard Floyd 
The road that Abraham followed to get to where God led him was a long one.  Abraham was known for his faith - and yet, the journey to get his son and hope for the tribe that God was building with their family was full of mistakes and missteps.

 There were a lot of ways in which Abraham tried to exercise his freedom and take control of the situation.

Yet now in his old age, Abraham rests in full confidence with the plan God has for him, and as he prepares for the end of his life, he continues to make sure that God's will continues to be followed.

Those plans now affect the next generation, specifically Isaac and the going about getting him a wife.  Something it seems (at least based on this portion of text) that Isaac won't have much say about. Isaac won't have any control over.

This is the age old dilemma, isn't it? Where in my life do I get to control, and where in my life do I simply need to learn to trust God and let go?  That need for control is often the very thing that leads to sin - missing the mark.

The process of letting go is not an easy one, and it isn't meant to be.  We need to learn to make decisions and to learn to control aspects of our life and personality.  However, as we mature in our life and in our faith, we begin to learn the reality of powerlessness and where we most definitely don't have control.

At least, hopefully we do.

 But it's awfully tempting a lot of the time to assume that we know best. That freedom means we have control of everything in our lives.

It took Abraham - already an old man by the time he began this journey - a while to fully learn to let go and trust in God's leadership. It's taking me some time myself.  I don't know about you, but I do a lot of backsliding on this "letting go of control" thing.

It takes daily reminders.  Prayers of strength and forgiveness.  People around me to remind me of my reality and direct my path when I dig in and don't want to let go.

If you don't have someone in your life like that - someone to remind you you aren't in control (a pastor, a friend, a therapist or small group, a spiritual director), I suggest finding someone.  Someone to help you when you go off the rails.  Someone to help keep you humble.

Again, the AA and other addiction groups seems to get it more seamlessly I think than many of our churches.  "One day at a time" and "let go and let God" are two of their slogans.  Pretty simple, even if it isn't easy.

God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change or control.  Courage to change the things I must.  And wisdom to know the difference.  And give me courage to find some in my life I trust to remind me of your patience and love when I forget and go my own way.  Amen.

Thoughts for engagement:

- What are the areas in your life you have the most trouble letting go in terms of control?
- How do you define freedom? Does it mean having control of every aspect of your life?
- Where is God calling you to let go of some control?

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