Give Up the Illusion of Control: Trust the God Who Holds You

As we continue our Lenten journey to “return to God with all your heart,” we’ve been reflecting on the things that keep us from drawing close to God. For you, is it busyness and distraction? The need for perfection—or to always be right? Or perhaps it’s the deep desire to stay in control?

Few things are harder to release than our sense of control. We hold tightly to schedules, expectations, and plans because they offer a sense of security. Yet Lent invites us to look honestly at this impulse and recognize that our need for control often grows not from faith but from fear—fear that everything might fall apart, fear of disappointing others, fear that God won’t show up in the way we hope. Throughout Scripture, God continually calls us to trust not in our own strength, but in Him.

Letting go of control does not mean becoming passive. It means shifting our weight. Instead of relying solely on our own understanding, we lean into the God who knows us fully. Instead of tightening our grip, we practice loosening it—through prayer, silence, stillness, or even the simple act of taking a deep breath. When we surrender our anxieties and outcomes to God, we discover a peace rooted not in everything going right, but in God’s unfailing presence with us.

This week, pay attention to where the Spirit may be inviting you to release your hold. A worry? A plan? A “should”? As we surrender the illusion of control, we remember whose hands we rest in—the hands of a God who is endlessly tender, endlessly trustworthy, and endlessly near.

To “return to God with all your heart” requires trust. Trust the God who holds you.