Skip to main content

What you are Telling Yourself Won’t Help



            Sometimes the way we think about things hurts us more than the actual events themselves.  Such is the case in Exodus chapter one.  It starts by sharing the thoughts of the new Egyptian Pharaoh who says, “The Israelites have become much too numerous for us.  Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country” (verse 10).
            Do you see the problem?  The new Pharaoh is convinced that, as the leader, his job is to “control” things.  Unfortunately, that rarely works. 
            First of all, the motivation is wrong.  Control is almost always fear based and fear based reactions most often lead in the wrong direction.  The Pharaoh feared that this big group of foreigners in his land would side with his enemies, but that fear was completely unfounded.  Who knows?  Maybe the Israelites would have been loyal to Egypt, but, because Pharaoh assumes the worst, he reacts badly. 
            Out of fear, he put harsh task masters over the Israelites and makes their lives miserable.  In the end, by trying to force his will on the situation, he actually caused the very problem that he was trying to avoid.  Pharaoh turns the Israelites against him and makes them eager to leave the country.  Fear based decisions almost always make things worse.
            The other reason control does not work is that control is an illusion!  Even if we can manipulate people and circumstances to our liking for a little while, it will not and cannot last.  It simply does not work.  It is similar to putting a lid on a pot of boiling water.  You can keep the steam in for a while, but, eventually, it is coming out and when it does it is likely coming out in a big way with a lot of commotion.  Pharaoh found this out the hard way too.  The more he tried to impose his will and control the Israelites, the stronger and more numerous they became (Exodus 1:12 and 20).
            As writer Donald Miller points out, “Even God does try to control people and he is the only one who actually can.  Perhaps there is a lesson in there for us”.  I think that he is right!
            Instead of telling yourself that it is your job to control or fix everything, maybe you would be better off focusing on what you can control:  You! 
            In reality, real and lasting change comes only when we do what we should do and when we treat people they way they should be treated.   
            Leading by example is the only leadership that works.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Art of Noticing.... Seeing what we need to see and what we miss when we don't

 What we focus on in life matters. Here are some scriptural reminders that will help us see correctly.  https://youtu.be/Rn76tV0ZH8s    
Post a Comment
Read more

Consider This: Twenty-three Descriptions of God (Psalm 145)

  Let’s play a quick game.  Take 10 seconds and list 5 or 6 words to describe God.  Got your words?  Good!   Here comes the game part.  I will list twenty-three ways that David describes God in Psalm 145, and we will see how many of his words match yours.   David says that God is, the king, great, majestic, wonderful, powerful, awesome, abundant in goodness, righteous, gracious, compassionate, slow to anger, rich in love, good to all, glorious, mighty, trustworthy, faithful, supporting, generous, providing, near, saving and watching.     How did you do? This is not a useless exercise.  The words we use to describe God not only indicate something about how we see him, but they also influence how we interact with him.  For example, if I know that God is “Gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love” (verse 8), I will not fear him, and I will not assume that he is against me.  When I remember that...
Post a Comment
Read more

Consider This: What is so Great About Grace?

If you were to drive by our house, you would see that Sara loves plants.  Our yard is full of flowers, and Sara lovingly tends every one of them. Which is why I was so afraid when she left town and put me in charge of keeping things alive. She must have been a little concerned, too, because she sent me two videos with specific instructions on how to water, when to water, and what to do.  Honestly, those first two videos helped, but the third one she sent was the one I liked most.  In that one, she said, “Please do your best. I want the yard to look good for the family reunion in two weeks.  However, if something dies, we will dig it out and pretend that it never existed!” That is what grace looks like!  Try your best, do what you can, but if it goes wrong, it will be ok. Sometimes we talk as though grace and effort are opposites.  That is not true.  They are partners. In one place, scripture asks, “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone c...
Post a Comment
Read more