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"Religion can be just as much about control as conquering nations can be when religious leaders forget who they are. Relationship, on the other hand, leaves room for difference and diversity."
As quoted from the book "Victor - Breaking Free From a Victim-Based Society" by John H. Hovis Page 71.
Control seems to be the downfall of so many of us seeking to live the life of a victor. So much of our lives are spent trying to maintain some level of control over our day-by-day circumstances. It often feels to me like the rest of our time is spent trying to recognize the efforts of others attempting to exert their need for control in ways that impact our lives. Victim thinking is something we all need to consider when control is an issue in our lives.
Such is the case as well in our church experiences. In my opening quote today I make a statement that is kind of hard for me to swallow. Equating churches to conquering nations is a comparison that is not something that I am proud of. Yet it is when the leaders of our churches forget who they are that control can become a victimizing opportunity. Let's dig into this concept a bit to see how control might be something we need to pay attention to in our own lives so that we don't become victim makers in our own way.
It is when church leaders look to their efforts to do the work that God has given them to bolster their identity that the issue of control can make the church something it was never suppose to be. I don't think there is any problem at all with feeling pride over a job well done, even when it comes to building a church organization. It is when we need our efforts to prove something about ourselves that the victimizing effects of control can really rear its ugly head.
The church leader who relies on increases in giving, attendance, conversions, or any number of other metrics that are measurable by human beings, as proof that they are all they are suppose to be in the eyes of the God they serve are sure to be trapped in victim thinking if left in that place for too long. Anything of this world that we use to try and prove who we are in the eyes of our God is something that will ultimately fail us in victim thinking ways.
The more we feel the sting of victim thinking the more we will be tempted to turn to control in an effort to get that sting out of our lives. That's when churches, or any organization headed by leaders using the organization to prove who they are, become more like conquering nations rather than the bastions of relationship they are suppose to be. Trying to use worldly things to control who we think we are is a disaster waiting to happen in the lives of a victor.
You see, control is really all about making things the same in ways that enable us to better manage them. Diversity and difference open the door to a bit of what feels like chaos when viewed through the lens of control. The leader stuck trying to make their organization part of who they are can often see diversity and difference as something that is hard to manage. Things that are hard to manage aren't very good at bolstering our identity. That's why leaders who are depending on their organizations to reflect positively on who they are so quickly turn to the homogeneous effects of control when they feel their identity being impacted.
Check out today's Bible reading as it relates to control.
Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’ Isaiah 46:9-10 (NIV)
Control is pretty evident in today's reading. God is in control. The words "I" and "my" are used seven times in these two verses. God is pretty serious about the issue of control. Maybe that is why He really hates what we make religion out to be when we work to interject our own control in the church building process. It isn't that God is a control freak. It is that He is the only one that can influence the world in a controlling way without making victimization the result.
A good leader is one who can influence those that surround them. Control and influence are two vastly different things. Unfortunately we have bought into the lie that control is required in order for influence to happen. Truth is that influence will happen as a result of control, however, that influence will be done in ways that ultimately lead to victimization. That's just not what God has planned for His Church.
The last line of today's reading says, "My purposes will stand..." Leaders exhibit control in an effort to try and help God's purposes be maintained. Not a bad strategy for sure. Problem is that we just don't fully understand God's purposes. God's ways are not our ways, a Biblical fact that is proven time and time again in this life. Trying to exert human control to achieve a Godly purpose that we might not fully understand is a strategy that has victim thinking written all over it. That's why control can be such a damaging thing when we use control to try and do for God in ways that help us see ourselves in the way we think God sees us. Tying our identity to anything other than what God says about us is nothing more than a one way ticket to victim thinking in the life of a victor.
What's the cure to control? The last seven words of today's Bible reading answers that question for me. God says, "I will do all that I please." If it pleases God to grow our church, it will grow. If it pleases God that our church not exist any longer it will not be there. Despite our best efforts to control the situation, God is God and we just can't change that. Sure our controlling efforts might delay the inevitable for a while. But, rest assured, your control and mine are nothing compared to the control of an all mighty God.
God isn't looking for you to be living a life that feels totally out of control. That is a feeling and a reality that God never intended for us to have. No, living out of control isn't God's plan. God wants us to live under control - His control. It is when we turn to our control for anything in this world that we are setting ourselves up for situations that will ultimately usher in victim thinking in our lives. When that is done inside the church, God grieves greatly at the results of the mess we create.
How much control do you feel in your life right now? My recommendation is to let God be in control and to use your influence backed by that control to do all it can to make change happen in all the lives of those you come into contact with today. Nothing you try to control will be enough to prove who you are. Your identity is set by what God says about you. You are His Child and that makes you all the victor you will ever need to be.
Control is pretty evident in today's reading. God is in control. The words "I" and "my" are used seven times in these two verses. God is pretty serious about the issue of control. Maybe that is why He really hates what we make religion out to be when we work to interject our own control in the church building process. It isn't that God is a control freak. It is that He is the only one that can influence the world in a controlling way without making victimization the result.
A good leader is one who can influence those that surround them. Control and influence are two vastly different things. Unfortunately we have bought into the lie that control is required in order for influence to happen. Truth is that influence will happen as a result of control, however, that influence will be done in ways that ultimately lead to victimization. That's just not what God has planned for His Church.
The last line of today's reading says, "My purposes will stand..." Leaders exhibit control in an effort to try and help God's purposes be maintained. Not a bad strategy for sure. Problem is that we just don't fully understand God's purposes. God's ways are not our ways, a Biblical fact that is proven time and time again in this life. Trying to exert human control to achieve a Godly purpose that we might not fully understand is a strategy that has victim thinking written all over it. That's why control can be such a damaging thing when we use control to try and do for God in ways that help us see ourselves in the way we think God sees us. Tying our identity to anything other than what God says about us is nothing more than a one way ticket to victim thinking in the life of a victor.
What's the cure to control? The last seven words of today's Bible reading answers that question for me. God says, "I will do all that I please." If it pleases God to grow our church, it will grow. If it pleases God that our church not exist any longer it will not be there. Despite our best efforts to control the situation, God is God and we just can't change that. Sure our controlling efforts might delay the inevitable for a while. But, rest assured, your control and mine are nothing compared to the control of an all mighty God.
God isn't looking for you to be living a life that feels totally out of control. That is a feeling and a reality that God never intended for us to have. No, living out of control isn't God's plan. God wants us to live under control - His control. It is when we turn to our control for anything in this world that we are setting ourselves up for situations that will ultimately usher in victim thinking in our lives. When that is done inside the church, God grieves greatly at the results of the mess we create.
How much control do you feel in your life right now? My recommendation is to let God be in control and to use your influence backed by that control to do all it can to make change happen in all the lives of those you come into contact with today. Nothing you try to control will be enough to prove who you are. Your identity is set by what God says about you. You are His Child and that makes you all the victor you will ever need to be.
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