Ephesians 6:10  Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.

“Teaching you would be simple if I negated your free will or overwhelmed you with My Power” – Sarah Young from “Jesus Calling”

I never really thought about it like that before. That God’s classroom of life would be much more simple if He just BOOM – made us understand. Sometimes I feel frustrated with my three-year old. I wish I could just force her to get it. But I can’t. I can’t for the same reason God doesn’t ram His lessons down my throat. We have free will. I have the choice to try to do it on my own. To be self-sufficient and independent are valued traits in our world, but to the Lord, real strength comes when I depend on Him. For everything.

Feeling like I can handle things on my own is really a huge obstacle to overcome. The giftings I’ve been given by my creator often hamper my ability to let go of  “control” and let God run my life. When I think I’m navigating life fine on my own is exactly the time I’ve gotten off course. Because if I’m not relying on God to steer me, I’m heading straight for rough waters. I’ve been there before. I know. I’m glad I’ve been given freedom to make my own decisions. But that freedom makes it easy to take off on a power trip of self-indulgence. I need to remember that it takes real strength to move over and let Jesus drive.

Lord, please help me to seek you in the decisions of my life. Show me continually that reliance on Your strength is the only place I find my own. Help me to keep my pride in check and focus on your powerful navigation of my world. Not my own meager back-seat-driving.