God is in control?
Life is good. Life is bad. Either way, it is God because of God. Or is it the devil’s fault? Maybe it’s something I did?
Many people don’t know why they are experiencing the quality of life that they have. When things are good- they are happy with God. When life takes a turn for the worse, they get mad at God and blame him. After all, “the Lord gives and the Lord takes away.”
Other people live on a permanent witch hunt against the devil. If by chance they have a good day- that means they prayed hard enough to end the devil’s torment momentarily. Most of the time life is a struggle and it is all the devil’s fault. They think the devil is persecuting them so much because they are doing so much for the kingdom of God (this, of course, is often far from the truth).
Other people seem to live as if they are the only factor in the equation. That success or failure resides totally upon themselves.God and the devil exist but they have little or nothing to do with their current life experience.
It seems that people have trouble finding a balance in life.
The good news is that with a little bit of time and effort spent studying God’s Word you can have these situations sorted out.
The Bible says multiple times that God is not a respecter of persons. Yet people live and believe as if He likes some people more than others. The reason that some people live a really good life is because God favors them. The reason the others live a really hard life because God hasn’t blessed them.
If you believe that the Bible is true and that God doesn’t have favorites, then that means what another person has done to become blessed, I can do that as well to become blessed.
I don’t have to live in a state of wonder whether God is blessing me, the devil is persecuting me, or I’m just messing things up on my own.
I’m going to share with you an actual conversation that I had with someone that will help illustrate this point.
To protect this person’s identity I’m going to call them “Clifford” And to protect my identity I’m going to call myself Jeremiah.
It started off with Cliff messaging me and saying God bless you, God is in control
Jeremiah: I’m curious- what do you mean by “God is in control”?
Clifford: Well I just felt like telling you that. I mean we sometimes get used to God, not knowing that even the smallest things in our lives matter to Him, and it’s not by coincidence. He had planned it. Sometimes He allows things to happen to us so that we may grow to know Him more.
Jeremiah: Do you think that God could allow bad things to happen to us to make us learn?
Clifford: There are always two kinds of things happening to us; if good things then it could either be God’s blessing or the devil trying to trick us. Then if bad, it could be a war by satan or God allowing them to take us to another level. But most of the time it’s not really a bad thing, but a situation where His name will be glorified.
(This is not part of the conversation: do you see how confusing this last statement was? Is God good? Or is he sending me problems so that I can learn? Or was it the devil persecuting me? Whatever it was- we are going to glorify His name for it… How on Earth would you know what to do if you don’t know if God is sending blessings, or curse, good or bad? What kind of mood is God in today?… To Clifford’s benefit, I don’t think this is his fault. I think he has been taught wrong)
Jeremiah: Are you familiar with Deuteronomy chapter 28? It talks about the blessing and the curse.
Clifford: Yes I am familiar with them
Jeremiah: So basically from that lesson I believe that the life we experience falls into either the curse or the blessing. Whichever we are experiencing is due to our lifestyle, our words and our actions.
“Proverbs 18:21 Death and life are in the power of the tongue…”
I’m not saying that a demon couldn’t try to oppress you, but if you are living according to the word of God it stands no chance at defeating you. The only way we experience the curse is by opening doors to it by our lifestyle. God only has good in store for us. The devil only has bad. What we experience is based on what we allow.
John 10:10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly.
3 John 2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.
Acts 10:38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.
Clifford: Oh now I understand what you are saying. But what gets my attention right now is Jeremiah 29:4, 9–11. I mean from verse 4, God caused the children of Israel to be held captive so that the promise could be fulfilled.
Jeremiah 29:4 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all who were carried away captive, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem to Babylon:
9 For they prophesy falsely to you in My name; I have not sent them, says the Lord.
10 For thus says the Lord: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place. 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.
Jeremiah: God allowed them to be held captive because they were disobedient to him for many generations. It wasn’t God’s plan that they live as captives in Babylon. God’s plan was always for them to live in Israel and serve him only. Because they chose to serve false God’s, the effect of the curse came upon them. God doesn’t send destruction: but if they (or we) disobey Him, then it will come upon them just as Deuteronomy 28 says it will.
Clifford: Ooooh now it does make sense, so that means the things we go through are results of what we did previously?
So you mean according to God’s plans, it works this way: “you do good, you get good, you do bad you get bad”?
Jeremiah: The life we are now experiencing is based on the words that we have previously spoken and the actions we have previously committed. Which is good because that means we are in control of our quality of life: based according to our knowledge and application of God’s Word.
Did you notice that the Israelites were always successful when they sought the Lord and did according to His plans? And they always failed when they stopped seeking Him and did their own thing…
Look at king David- he faced many hard situations: but he always overcame them in victory when he sought the Lord first. It wasn’t until he committed sin that life for him took a turn for the worse.
I’m not saying you won’t have battles to fight- but if you are living according to the Word then you have to be victorious. Jesus already defeated the devil, we are more than conquerors through Him. I can do all things through Christ who gives me the strength.
The only time I don’t win is when I don’t hear God’s voice/plan (which would be my fault) or if I am doing something against God’s Word.
Many people live in failure because they speak failure instead of speaking victory according to God’s Word.
Clifford: Oooh now everything makes sense! Plus we have been given authority! It now depends on us, how we control the situations we encounter. We can do all things through Christ who strengthen us!
This was a conversation that I had with a complete stranger on Instagram.
As long as you think God is in complete control, you will never succeed. You will always attribute your success to God and blame Him for your failures.
We need to realize that with God on our side we will never fail. In order to get him on our side, we have to live according to His Word.
Jesus doesn’t need to defeat the devil again. He needs His church to realize that He has already won the victory for us. We need to walk in that authority that has been given to us
The life that you experience is in your control. God and the devil will influence that experience to the extent that you let them according to your words and actions
If you are a Christian and are living with a failure mindset, you are insulting the work that Jesus did for you at Calvary.
It’s time for you to rise up and take them dominion over life.
