One of the biggest frustrations a lot of people suffer from is the inability to control what they wish they could control; and there are quite a number of those things. You simply cannot control whether a person you like would like you back, what skin colour you show up in, what the weather will be like on your wedding, how other people drive in Lagos or when Messi decides to leave Barcelona… ?????

There are too many things in life we possibly cannot control. Things we wished we could be able to control. I’m sure you’re thinking if you could control everything to simply do your bidding, you’d be just fine… right? Truth is, you’re not likely going to be. But if I may ask, why do we so desperately need this control? Why do we wish we could make things and people do what we want? Why is AI becoming such a global phenomenon? Why are there groundbreaking innovations around Smart Phones, Smart Houses, Smart and Driverless Cars? What’s driving all these massive disruptions, inventions and innovations?

The desire of man to be able to have what he wants when he wants it and how he wants it. Smart things programmed with AI have been wired to do exactly what you please as the user. The more responsive you want a machine to be to your will and emotions, the more AI has to be wired into it.

Why this unending desire for control? Well, we humans want control more than anything, so that these things and people could serve our WILLS… Hmmn. We want to have what we want to have at the time we want it and how we want it… So that in the end, Our Wills are satisfied with its desires. This is why Money is one of the major tools of deviation the devil uses to distract people from relying on God. The teaching we received just yesterday in church echoes this truth.

The devil uses money to create an illusion of control, since money can get you literally whatever you want. And if what you have, cannot afford what you want, more money added to what you have will afford you what you want… and further and further away from God, men go in search of control and all its promises. They go for right here and now at the expense of a “God” who could tell them to wait on a long queue of prayer requests before even attempting to check their case file… right?

“Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy.” I Timothy 6:17 NKJV

Money gives an illusion of trust and the rich run the greatest risk of trusting it. Please don’t get me wrong, we are covenant bound to be wealthy, but first our trust must be so locked into God that even when we become wealthy and God says to give it all away, we can do so without feeling a loss, because God has become our sufficiency.

Our desire to want to control things is first a product of the Mandate of God over our lives, the mandate to dominate and rule over creation; which is in itself a righteous desire. But that desire was never intended to be indulged beyond the scope of God’s Instructions. The devil enticed Eve by giving her the impression that once she eats of the forbidden fruit, she would be like God and have limitless knowledge and power whilst possessing the same corrupt and independent will that is apart from God. Eve fell for the bait of Control without Submission. The devil’s propaganda to Eve; you can have The Power of God, without submitting to The Will of God. Hmmmn… Adam and Eve fell for that trick and fell real bad from the honourable position God had placed man.

Till today, the devil keeps pushing this agenda. “You can have all you WANT which is a function of your will; simply deviate from the ordained protocol of Submission to The Ultimate Will. I can give you what will make the girl like you back, I can give you the money you need in no time, I can make everyone follow you on social media, I can give you all you ever dreamed for, simply stop depending on the Will of God! Crown your own will as King! Your will is Lord!” The devil yells!

So here is my charge to you friend… We have been so wired by God to never find satisfaction in any other thing apart from His Will. This is why there is utter futility in crowning ourselves as ur own gods. As much as we have legitimate desires to control things, that same desire ought to be a reminder of our need for submission to a higher Will that is able to make all things work together for our good… but while they are working together, they don’t receive orders from you, but from Him. You submit your will to The Lord in prayer, The Lord makes the best meaning of your prayer and creates a strategy after which He informs ALL THINGS concerning that matter. Then ALL THINGS concerning that matter begin to work in your favour as though you were the one controlling them.

You will win more battles as a submitted man to The Will of God than you will as a man who crowned his will as Lord.

Prayer is our instrument of submission to the will of God. Through prayer, we are able to surrender our nagging needs for control, hand it over to the One who really can handle that pressure, while we take on the peace and joy that come from having God take care of our matter.

We know we may not be able to control ALL THINGS… but we know how to submit to Him that does and once we do, those same things begin to work together for our good as if we were the Commander.

It’s beautiful the way The Lord shields us from our own folly. An all controlling Will only make sense if that Will is also all knowing; and that is only possible in a “God Context”. That way, it knows all the possible combinations of inputs that can give the best output and outcomes, it is with this knowledge, He then orchestrates the dynamics of His workings to make things work in our favour. This is why when a man has that kind of absolute control without the requisite absolute knowledge, he would always end up in misery. This is why very famous and rich people sometimes end up miserable! They had all money could buy, they used it to get all they wanted and desired, yet the outcomes were not what they had expected… Oops! Depression, Distress and sometimes even Death! 3 deadly Ds!!!

Prayer is powerful friends! It is what helps us to Crown The Right Will. I encourage you today, even when you cannot control everything, you can decide to pray, that prayer can put the control in the right hands and you ought to just watch how things begin to work their socks off just for your good!

“Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:26‭-‬28 NKJV

Prayer is what guarantees the working together of ALL things in your favour. So when you cannot control what you wish you could control, what do you do? Cuss? Nag? Complain? I encourage you to pray!

Pray right now! Put it all in His hands! He’s got you! Crown The Right Will!

God bless your heart.

Have a productive week ahead.

Dami Oguntunde
@damioguntunde