The Never Ending Gifts

Why do I have such a hard time getting out of bed on Mondays? I rolled over and forced myself to open my eyes. The only thing I had to do today was “thank God for being in control”—my Connection Challenge exercise. Surely I could handle that, and the other things on my list with God’s help.

I pulled myself out of bed and into the bathroom, picked up my toothbrush and put the usual smidgen of toothpaste on it. God is in control. Hey, that reminded me of the song by Twila Paris. “God is in Control” would be a good song to have stuck in my head today, so I recited the first line and set it in play.

After I got dressed, I trudged into the kitchen. What sounds good for breakfast, cold cereal or oatmeal? Cereal would be quicker, but I needed some comfort food, so I made myself a steamy bowl of oatmeal with cinnamon and banana, and then sat down to eat.

“Dear God, I’m still dragging this morning, and I don’t know why, but I thank you for being in control.”

As I said those last words, I felt a little lighter as my body relaxed.

That’s odd. I don’t have any issues going on. Why did that happen?

I tried it again. “God, I am thankful that you are in control of this world.”

Again my body relaxed a bit and I felt encouraged.

Wow, I guess I was feeling uneasy about the world. But should that be a surprise when day after day we hear unsettling news about the economy, natural disasters, murder, and mayhem? Just yesterday I heard that Sacramento, where I live, has the highest number of deaths from the flu this year. That alone was enough to put me on edge.

But God is in control (pause for music to play in my head). Although man still has free will, somehow God’s good plan for the world, and for me, will be accomplished. Acknowledging this fact gave me confidence and courage to face the day.

“Thank you, God, for being in control.”

I’m going to have to remember to say this more often.

Below is tomorrow’s “Connection Challenge” exercise:

Premise: To receive God’s power and peace in my life, I need to be connected to Jesus (John 15:4-5).

Guidelines: For 21 days, my only goal will be to connect with Jesus throughout each day. I can also do any other activity if I can do it with Jesus.

Connection Aid: Day 15, Tuesday January 21: Praise God

In 1 Chronicles 29:10-11, King David praises God for his power and majesty, and in Psalm 140:7 he calls on God—his sovereign Lord and strong deliverer. Today I will connect to Jesus by praising my powerful, majestic, sovereign God who protects and cares for me.