Out of Control
- Allison K. Lewis
- Nov 9, 2018
- 3 min read
Updated: Mar 11, 2020
Luke 7:1-10 When Jesus had finished saying all this to the people who were listening, he entered Capernaum. 2 There a centurion’s servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die. 3 The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to him, asking him to come and heal his servant. 4 When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him, “This man deserves to have you do this, 5 because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue.” 6 So Jesus went with them.
He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. 7 That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8 For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
9 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.” 10 Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found the servant well.
I was struck between the eyes this morning by this passage of scripture. Someone who is the boss with such strong faith and no need to “control” the situation. You see, I am struggling right now with the desire, well actually what I think is a NEED to be in control. There are several things going on in my life right now that are big decisions, but I have no control over how each thing will happen. How long it will take? What is going on behind the scenes? Are we making the right decision? What is my future? Am I on a forward trajectory or a stagnant one?
All these things were floating around in my mind this morning, and then I read these words from the centurion through his friends to Jesus “But say the word, and my servant will be healed.” (Luke 7:7)...”When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.” (Luke 7:9)
The centurion who had a lot of power to control doesn’t need to be in control and have the face-to-face meeting. He didn’t need to do it himself. In fact, he thought himself unworthy to even meet with Jesus. He, a centurion, and apparently a high-ranking centurion, considered himself less than Jesus. He TRUSTED that if Jesus said his servant would be healed, that indeed his servant would be healed. He didn’t need to see Jesus touch his servant. He didn’t ask for a potion or something tangible to give to the servant. He knew that if Jesus wanted to heal the servant that He would.
I want that kind of humility and faith. I want to trust Jesus with everything, and stop worrying about the what ifs. Anxiety can cause us considerable detriment, and I definitely do not want to fight that battle. So I am deciding today, to cast all my cares (1 Peter 5:7). I just learned the head knowledge for this recently, now it is time to apply what I learned. I thought I was in good shape while I studied a couple of months ago, not really needing those lessons. Now, I am clinging to the truths I learned and it is time to APPLY what I learned.
God cares about us, and He cares about what makes us anxious. My need for control causes me anxiety. However, I don’t have to let it. I can CAST my cares. I will CAST my cares. I am not in control, even if I think I am. God is the only one in control. He has a plan that I need to follow. He asks for my obedience, so that’s what I’ll do. Just like the old hymn says, I’ll trust and obey. Just as the centurion did.