Who Is in Control of Your Life?

     Who is in control of your life?  Is it you?  Someone else?  The devil?  Or is it God?

     Our natural tendency is to want to control our lives.  We tend to think we know better how to run our lives than God.  Maybe we have issues of trust, feeling scared to surrender to God.  If we fully surrendered to God, would He be good?  Would He have our best interest in mind?  Yes, He is so very good, the best!  Yes, He does have our best interest in mind!  Maybe we feel angry when God doesn’t do things our way.  I recently wrote a blog article about that called, “Are You Angry at God?”  (See link below.)  What I feel compelled to address today is the issue of pride.  Sometimes we want control of our lives because we are proud and think we know better than God.  Sometimes we have an overinflated opinion of ourselves.

     I wrote a blog called, “God Will Help You Overcome Selfish Pride.”  [See link below.]  In this blog I addressed the issue of comparing ourselves with others.  Today, I am addressing the aspect of our pride towards God.

    Who is in control of your life?  God wants us to have a healthy self-esteem based on His love.  He values us at the price of the blood and life of Jesus!  There is no other greater price that He could pay to purchase us to Himself as His people!  Those who believe in Jesus’ death on the cross about 2,000 years ago for the punishment of the wrongs we have committed and believe in His ascension from the dead to sit beside the Heavenly Father on His throne can be forgiven and go to heaven when we leave this life by death or rapture!  (You can learn more about this in my last blog, “Who Is Jesus Christ?” and by reading the pamphlet on the Home Page of my website, second paragraph.  [See links below.])  You are so very valuable to God!

     However, God does not want us to think more highly about ourselves than we should.  He does not want us to think we are so strong that we don’t need Him.  We are warned by the apostle Paul in Romans 12:3 in the Bible (King James Version):  “For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.”  The context of this passage is explaining that we who are Christians in the Body of Christ, the Church of Jesus Christ, each have our roles and need one another.  However, we also learn from this verse not to think we are self-sufficient and don’t need God.  It behooves us to ask God for a humble heart.

     Who is in control of your life?  God loves everybody and wants us to love (not necessarily like in this world) everyone.  We are told in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  We talked about that verse last week in my blog article, “Who Is Jesus Christ?”.  On the other hand, we learn from Proverbs 8:13 that God hates our pride.  It has been often said, “God hates the sin, not the sinner.”  I believe the Bible supports this idea.  We are instructed in Proverbs 8:13, “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil:  pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I [God] hate.”  Let us ask God for the fear of the Lord, which is to hate evil, defined as pride, arrogancy, the evil way, and the froward mouth.  All of these things God hates!  Strong’s Concordance defines froward  (#6617) as “…to twine, i.e. (lit. [literally]) to struggle or (fig.) be (morally) tortuous:–(shew self) froward, shew self unsavoury, wrestle.”  [See Bibliography below.]  In the United States, we might say that a froward mouth is a sassy, smart [sarcastic], caustic [attacking] mouth.  God dislikes these!  Most of us do, I think!  God is our Creator.  His hatred of pride is reason enough for us to hate it, too, and to want to be rid of it.  It stinks to God.  I don’t know about you, but I want to smell good spiritually to God!  Do you?

     James 4:6 tells us, “But He [God] giveth more grace.  Wherefore He saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.”  God resists proud people, but gives grace, His kindness and enabling, to those who acknowledge their need for Him.  God helps the humble.  We can certainly ask God to take away any pride we have, and He will certainly do that.  We may likely find ourselves put through trials to help us learn to depend on God and not ourselves.

     Who is in control of your life?  James 4:10 says, “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall lift you up.”  There is spiritual beauty in asking God for help.  God loves to help us when we humble ourselves before Him, and He will lift us up!  He will lift us up out of guilt and sinful habits!  He will lift us up to His uplifting, truthful thoughts!  He will lift us up to a better self-esteem based on His love!  He will lift us up out of sorrow, depression, and emotional or physical pain (in His perfect timing)!  He will lift us up out of painful circumstances as we wait on Him!

     Who is in control of your life?  We looked at one verse in Proverbs above.  The book of Proverbs in the Bible offers us much additional advice to ask God for a humble spirit.  As Proverbs 11:2 says, “When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom.”  God will share His wisdom and wonderful ideas with us when we humble ourselves before Him!  We are told in Proverbs 13:10, “Only by pride cometh contention; but with the well-advised is wisdom.”  We can see here that pride causes arguments!  But those who receive instruction become wise!  Proverbs 16:5 informs us, “Everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished.”  Well, that right there certainly motivates me to humble myself before God!  God considers the proud in heart an abomination to Him!  Even if proud people ban together to support one another, He will punish the proud who don’t repent!

     Proverbs 16:18 warns us, “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.”  Ooh!  Has that happened to you?  God has had to humble me many, many times!  He is still humbling me!  You can read my autobiography and learn more about God’s lessons to me in humility.  [See link below.]  Proverbs 16:19 goes on to say, “Better it is to be of an humble spirit with the lowly, than to divide the spoil with the proud.”  It is better to be humble with other humble people than to share ill-gotten rewards with the proud!  Proverbs 21:4 informs us, “An high look, and a proud heart, and the plowing of the wicked, is sin.”  God doesn’t want us to have a high look, or stick our noses up in the air, thinking we are superior.  He does not want our hearts to be proud and haughty.  He does not want us to be wicked people who “plow” sinful plots to reap harmful deeds!  This is all sin, which separates us from God!  Let us repent of any of this right this moment and get into a right relationship with our loving God!

     Who is in control of your life?  In Proverbs 21:24, we discover that, “Proud and haughty scorner is his name, who dealeth in proud wrath.”  Ooh!  Let us pray not to be this proud and haughty scorner who shoots words like poisonous arrows  to wound people with his/her proud wrath and deception.  These kinds of verbal arrows are inspired by the devil!  Few people want to be around this kind of person!  God, most importantly, does not delight in such a heart until he/shey repents!  Proverbs 29:23 cautions us, “A man’s pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.”  God will bring us low if we persist in pride; but if we are humble in spirit, He will honor us; and we will retain honor!  Being honored by God and retaining honor sounds really good to me!  How about you?

     Who is in control of your life?  The book of Psalms in the Bible also offers us warnings against pride.  Psalm 12:3-4 gives us this sober warning, “The LORD shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things.  Who have said, With our tongue we will prevail; our lips are our own: who is lord over us?”  Let us repent if this verse describes us!  Jesus will forgive us!  Psalm 40:4 says, “Blessed is that man that maketh the LORD his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.”  Psalm 119:21 tells us, “Thou hast rebuked the proud that are cursed, which do err from thy commandments.”  Has God rebuked you before?  He has rebuked me!  I am grateful for His correction, and I sure want to stay on His good side!  Psalm 138:6 instructs us, “Though the LORD be high, yet hath He respect unto the lowly: but the proud He knoweth afar off.”  God and Jesus are our life!  I do not want them to know me from afar off!  I want them to be really close to me!  Do you feel the same way?

     Here are some more verses about pride in the Bible.  Isaiah 2:12 says, “For the day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low….”  Verse 17 of that same chapter adds, “And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.”  We can escape Jesus’ judgment on our pride if we repent of our pride and surrender to Him!  He is waiting with open arms to receive us, including you!

     Who is in control of your life?  We learn about King Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, in Daniel 5:20, “But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory.”  His sensibilities were stripped from him, and he lived in the wilderness like a wild animal!  When he came to his senses seven years later, he praised God!  Then his throne and kingdom were restored to him!  If we persist in pride, God may humble us like He did Nebuchadnezzar!  –Although not necessarily as drastically!  When we repent of our pride and praise God, God will restore to us the blessings He took away temporarily or give us something better!

     You can read all about Nebuchadnezzar’s story in Daniel chapters 3-4.  If you don’t have a Bible, you can read English versions online at https://biblegateway.com.  Just go to that website, type in Daniel 3 in the search bar and read it; then type Daniel 4 and read that.

     First Corinthians 13:4 (New King James Version) describes love to us:  “Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up.”  Puffed up is another way of saying proud.  God wants us to humble our hearts before Him to receive His amazing love!  If we ask Him, He will take out our stony hearts and give us hearts of flesh, which means tender hearts!  Ezekiel 36:26 gives us the wonderful news, “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.”

     Who is in control of your life?  Philippians 2:3 directs us, “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.”  Self-will is just strife and vainglory, boasting in the flesh.  Let us esteem each other better than ourselves.  Especially, let us esteem God the highest above ourselves.  We are not God and never will be!  Isaiah 45:5-8 (New International Version) sets the record straight:

     Ezekiel 28:12-19 tells us about the fall of the king of Tyre.  We believe it also depicts the fall of Satan, the devil.  The reason the devil was kicked out of heaven was because of pride.  You can read this in English on biblegateway.com if you do not have a Bible.

     Who is in control of your life?  Jesus tells us in Luke 14:11, “For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”  Matthew 23:12 quotes Jesus’ statement like this:  “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”  Sounds like the humble being lifted up, doesn’t it?  It sounds like many verses above about God blessing the humble and humbling the proud, too.

     As you can see, there are many verses in the Bible about pride.  There are many verses I did not mention because of time.  You can look up the word pride if you have a Strong’s Concordance of the Bible to study more verses on pride.

     Who is in control of your life?  I found an article called “Bible Verses About Pride” on a website called https://biblestudytools.com.  I thought the article to be very helpful on the subject of pride.  Here is a quote from that article:

     Pride can blind us to our own faults, make us resistant to correction, and create a false sense of self-sufficiency.  It often leads to other sins, such as envy, anger, and dishonesty as we strive to maintain an image of superiority.  Embracing humility allows us to align with God’s will and experience His grace more freely.  By letting go of pride, we open ourselves to growth, healing, and deeper relationships with God and others.  Memorize these Bible verses about pride as you seek to cultivate a spirit of humility, acknowledging our need for God and remaining teachable and open to His guidance.

Thank you, biblestudytools.com for that helpful paragraph!  It is true and good advice!

     Who is in control of your life?  The Bible mentions one reason people get proud:  how much money they have.  First Timothy 6:17 advises us this:  “Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy.”  Let those of us who have riches pray that money will not make us proud.  Let the rich not trust in these riches which can vanish quickly and will be left behind when we die or are raptured.  Rather, let us trust in the living God.  He is the One who gives us richly all things to enjoy!  When we put too much trust and security in someone or something other than the Lord, we can be plagued with insecurity about losing him, her, or it.  When we surrender all we have to God, relationships and money, then we can find the peace that only He can give us!  When we give Him control, we know He will care for us!  Those of us who don’t have much money can also find peace and security in God when we trust Him with the little we have, knowing He will provide what else we need!  He may even bless us with some of our wants in this life!

     We read in 1 John 2:16, “For all that is in the world–the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life–is not of the Father, but is from the world.”  Let us ask God our Heavenly Father for victory over the lust of the flesh that makes us want to commit evil acts; the lust of the eyes that tempts us to covet what does not belong to us; and the pride of life, the thought that we are better than God or others!  Galatians 6:3 tells us, “For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.”  We are nothing without God.  Even with God, we utterly need Him!

     Who is in control of your life?  We learn of a church in Revelation 3 that describes many people in this day.  Jesus says in verses 14-22:

     And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.  So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.  Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:  I counsel thee to buy of Me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.  As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.  Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.  To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in My throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in His throne.  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

Who is in control of your life?  If it is Jesus, then you may very well be a “hot” Christian Jesus described above!  However, if any of us think we can serve God on our own, or worse, don’t think we need Him, we may be cold or lukewarm.  Coffee and tea drinkers know how appetizing a hot cup of liquid can be.  Lukewarm coffee or tea isn’t appetizing.  Those Christians who are lukewarm in their love for Jesus will be spewed out of Jesus mouth.  Could that mean they won’t be able to hear the Holy Spirit granting them wisdom?  I’m not sure.  But I know I don’t want to be one of those lukewarm Christians!  Pray with me that we will be hot Christians, fervently in love with Jesus and serving Him with all of our hearts, souls, minds, and strength!

     In Matthew 22:35-40, we hear a story about Jesus and His words.  They are:

     Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law?  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

Loving the Lord our God with all our hearts, all our souls, and all our minds is the first and great commandment.  The second commandment is similar, to love our neighbors (everyone else) as ourselves.

     Who is in control of your life?  The truth is that when we try to maintain control of our lives, we open ourselves up to being controlled by Satan, the devil!  Jesus told us in John 10:9-11, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.  The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.  I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

Jesus is the door into the Presence of God and heaven!  If we believe in Him, which is entering Him, the door, then we will be saved!  We can go in His Presence and out to minister and work, with safety and provision!  He calls Himself the good Shepherd in that passage.  He will provide for us like a shepherd leading a sheep to wildflowers, grass, oats, and corn for sustenance!  The thief, the devil and those under his influence, only come to us to steal from us, to kill us, and to destroy us.  Jesus has come to us in the form of the perfect Man who is God so that we might have life, and that we might have it more abundantly!  Jesus is the good Shepherd.  He gave His life on the cross about 2,000 years ago for the sheep, for Israel, for you, for me, and for every person in the whole world, dead or living!  If we hold onto control of our lives, we will actually find ourselves tricked and plundered by the devil and demons!  Go to Jesus and find love, shelter, protection, and food for your thirsty heart, soul, and body!  He will accept us, even if we have had proud hearts!

     In closing, let me leave you with this verse God specifically laid on my heart to share with you all.  It is Psalm 32:9:  “Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee.”  Let us not be like a stubborn horse or mule without understanding, who must be controlled with a bit and bridle, or else they will not approach the owner.  God is our owner!  He created us!  Let us obey Him!  Let us give God, including Jesus, control of the “wheel” of our lives!  We can trust Him and His love!  He is the best!  In the words of Carrie Underwood’s song, “Jesus Take the Wheel!”  [See link below.]

     Let me know how I can pray for you as you struggle to let God have control of your life!  Pray for me, too!  We all struggle with this one at times!

Here is my Home Page where you can find Charlie’s gospel tract, “You are SO Loved!”  It is the link in the second paragraph.

Home – Bride Of Jesus Ministry

Below is the link to my blog, “God Will Help You Over Selfish Pride”:

Here is a link to my blog “Are You Angry at God?”:

This is a link to my blog “Who Is Jesus Christ?”

Here is a link to my autobiography:

A Little Person With A Big Testimony: My Autobiography – Bride Of Jesus Ministry

Word definition taken from:  Strong, James, S.T.D., L.L.D.  Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance Of The Bible.  Royal Publishers, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee 37203.

Listen to Carrie Underwood’s delightful song, “Jesus Take The Wheel”!  This is for all you modern country music fans and anyone else.  I once heard a third grader sing this song at my children’s elementary school Talent Show.  That young girl “brought the house down” with her heart-felt and powerful singing!  I love how she witnessed about Jesus in a public school!  I believe Carrie Underwood’s video will touch your heart, too!