Biblical Answer

Why did I have to lose my sense of control over my life?

#### The Reality of Our Spiritual Formation

We are not in control of our spiritual formation. This is a hard lesson for followers of Jesus today. We can't control our spiritual lives; we intentionally design our lives to give Jesus free rein over our formation. If we do this, a whole new level of joy becomes available. Our tendency toward unforgiveness, for example, may be acquired from our parents. We can't change this by ourselves; we need to take control of our mind through Jesus Christ.

#### The Role of God's Sovereignty

God's ways are much better than our own. He instructs us not to accept as truth everything we think. Our minds can be controlled by our sinful desires, and we can become slaves to our ungodly passions. However, God's sovereignty is a blessing. He rescues the godly from temptation. We can rely on God's grace to gain self-control.

#### Taking Control of Our Mind

The battle for our life is fought and won in our mind. God wants us to take control of our mind, in Jesus' name, through the power of His Holy Spirit. We can think our way into changing our life for good. We can take control of our mind by recognizing the things that cloud our access to God, such as habits we can't break or unconcerned attitudes. We can also recognize the enemy's attempts to convince us that we can't move from where we are to where we want to be. By taking control of our mind, we can live the life God has designed us to live. We can see God's control over our lives and discern His sovereignty. This new power of vision gives us a new life of joy and liberation. The new birth gives us a new power of vision by which we begin to discern God's control. His sovereignty was there all the time, but with God being true to His nature, we could not see it until we received His very nature ourselves.