Controlling the Head



“Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” Matthew 6:27

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11

 The other day I was reading a devotional message that began with words that were credited as coming from God to us. It read, “Let me control your mind.” While the point of the message was great and exactly what I needed to hear it took a backseat for a second to an entirely different image. Eventually I realized I’d been giving a sweet reminder that God is in control.
My days are spent in a public elementary school where I work with children with special needs. We eat lunch at the same time as the kindergarten children. One little girl has become a favorite of mine. She has graciously forgiven one of my students on more than one occasion as, in his haste, he’s come just short of knocking her over. When I apologize on his behalf, she responds, “That’s alright” with just a hint of a lisp and a sweet forgiving smile. Precious!

This little angel is also a beautiful child. She’s isn’t cute because she’s five. She isn’t a child who will grow into her face and be pretty.  She is a gorgeous little girl whose face shows the promise of a gorgeous big girl. And, I’m told, she has quite a bit of, hm, what’s the tactful word…..personality. I see her in snapshot moments a few times a week and I think she’s great.

The other day she came by me wearing her hair in two little buns, one on each side of her head. The buns were adorned with pretty bows. She looked adorable and I said so to her teacher. The teacher then told me that when our little sweetie wears her hair that way, the teacher steers her around the room, very gently I’m sure, by her hairstyle. That morning the little princess arrived in the classroom and gave her teacher a directive.
“You’re not controlling my head today.” She said.

That’s hilarious, isn’t it? (Maybe that’s the “personality” I keep hearing about. Love it!)  Now think about it in terms of “Let me control your mind.” Too often I say to my Father in heaven, “You’re not controlling my head [mind] today.” The sad part is I do it without thinking about it.
The point of the devotional message was that we let worries and distractions steal our peace and that if we let God, our loving, protective Father, control our thoughts, keeping them focused on Him, we will experience more joy, more calm moments. We accomplish nothing by worrying. More to the point, we accomplish headaches and ulcers. I’d rather have peace and joy.

My little friend does not need her teacher to “control” her head but she does need her to lead and guide her through the day.
I need God to lead and guide me through the day and the best way I can see that happen is by giving my thoughts, concerns and decisions to Him. Letting God control my mind is a great idea and now every time I see my little buddy I will remember that I should do just that.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Applause, Applause and Protection

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, Hebrews 12:1 Reading some Scripture this morning I was reminded of a message that I watched from Louie Giglio. In it Louie described a child of God leaving her home for the day. He goes on about how the heavenly beings see it. With great excitement, he tells of the joy and applause going on in heaven as the woman gets in the elevator, gets to the parking lot and gets in her car. It’s hilarious and over the top, (remember I did say it was Louie Giglio!) but there’s a great lesson in it. My husband and I were watching a TV show about a fictional former president. At one point the poor man is just over the Secret Service detail. He’s tired of them following him around so he fires them. It takes less than five minutes for him to start to see all that they’ve been doing for...
Read more

My Father Saw That

She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me, “for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” Genesis 16:13 There’s a movie from several years ago that I absolutely love! It’s called “The American President.” The premise is that the president, who is a widower, has begun to date. He’s dating a lovely woman while running for reelection. His opponent is awful. He knows he doesn’t have much of a chance against the popular incumbent so he tries to make a mountain out of the molehill of the standing president’s romance. At one point there is a news clip that shows the woman in a protest during her college days. After the clip plays the opponent refers to the president’s lady friend as “the president’s whore.” She groans and says to the president “My father saw that!” She is devastated, not because what is being said is true but because her father, who she loves and respects, saw the clip and heard those words spoken about her. I thought of ...
Read more

Not Really god, where are you?

Then they called on the name of Baal from morning to noon.”Baal answer us!” they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered. And they danced around the altar they had made. At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Shout louder!” he said, “Surely he is a god! Perhaps his is deep in thought, or busy or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.” 1 Kings 18:26b-27 Those who know me would be quick to tell you that I am a bit sarcastic. It’s a quality that I have passed on to my children and even some of my grandchildren. Some days I feel a little guilty. Is that really a quality that God wants to see in me? Certainly that cannot be my go to attitude but there are times that it comes in quite nicely. This morning, reading a totally unrelated verse, I was reminded of this account in the first book of Kings. (It begins at verse 16 and continues to the end of the chapter. I highly recommend reading it if you haven’t and it if you have reread it. It’s great!) In this p...
Read more