We can’t control the people in our relationships or the circumstances we may face. But there is a way that offers us hope.
I drank in the silence as evening settled. I was preparing to lead a Bible study and needed to focus. Friends had asked my husband and me to house-sit for them, and Tim was out for the day.
The house was situated in the Pennsylvania woods. The night sounds comforted but also unnerved me. Married only a year, nights alone felt lonely.
The hearty stone fireplace invited me to review my notes in the living room. I paced the floor, studying.
Suddenly, I stopped. A snake lay in the corner of the living room. I stood paralyzed by fear.
What do I do?
And then I remembered years ago when my mom found a snake in her kitchen; she grabbed a glass bowl and placed it over the snake.
Bingo.
I crept to the kitchen, grabbed a bowl, and carefully set it over the coiled snake.
I trapped it!
I sat there for several minutes staring at the snake through the glass bowl, ensuring it wouldn’t escape. After an hour of watching the snake, Tim finally returned home.
“I caught a snake!” I said as he entered the house.
“Careful!” I warned. “It might be venomous.”
Tim took a cookie sheet, slid it underneath the bowl, and carried the snake outside. He released it, and we both watched for what it would do.
Seconds passed. It didn’t move. After another few seconds, nothing.
Finally, Tim crept closer to the snake, then turned and looked at me and said, “Chris, it’s a fake snake.”
When Our Attempts at Control Fail
I wanted to crawl under a rock. I was so proud of my accomplishment. I felt so brave trapping a snake. I believed I had everything under control. But the snake was a fake.
Later, when I could laugh about the situation, I realized the irony of it all. I was preparing a Bible study on control, and as I pondered that fake snake, I thought about my own illusions of control.
How often have I found myself confident in a situation, believing I had everything together, yet failing to realize the “snake is a fake?”
And yet, there is good news in realizing I am not in control. How?
I’m honored to be writing for Club31 Women today. You can read the rest of my devotional here:
May we remember today, friends, that when our attempts at control fail, there is good news. We have Someone fighting for us who has complete control and loves us beyond words.
I liked the phrase that "power is motivated by a heart that loves us." Only way to trust it.