Take Ownership

Proverbs 16:³² “Better to be patient than powerful; better to have self-control than to conquer a city. Moderation is better than muscle, self-control better than political power.” (NLT & MSG)

Jeremiah 2:²⁵ “Slow down. Take a deep breath. What’s the hurry? Why wear yourself out? Just what are you after anyway? But you say, ‘I can’t help it…’” (MSG). I cannot count how many times people have said to me, ‘Pastor, there is no time!’, and that is the problem. Look at your to-do list, if you have ten things, I want to challenge you to cancel five. Cancel five? Yes, and then go ahead to have a ‘not-to-do’ list. I am constantly looking at my life and asking myself what I should be handing off, so that I can focus on what only I can do. What should you be taking your hands off? You cannot put your hands everywhere if you want to have traction. If you want to have a quality life, you need to ask yourself what you need to hand off.

There are some things that by now should be your children’s business. Hands-off, you cannot be controlling everything. What do you hands off? Slow down, life is short, it passes quickly. Life can be slippery and tricky, slow down. Sometimes, we talk faster than we think, have you noticed? Some people’s mouths are moving at a hundred kilometres per hour, but their brains are moving at twenty kilometres per hour. Whereas their mouths have said many things, their brain is still trying to catch up. Slow down! Let your mouth be slower than your brain. Let your brain work faster. I know that we have different capacities and different rates, but whatever your rate is, slow your mouth, and your tongue down. Let your tongue always be behind your brain.

Proverbs 13:³ “Those who control their tongue will have a long life; opening your mouth can ruin everything”. Stop rushing through your day, for instance, slow down. We are all familiar with the brakes of the car, but do you know that the accelerator can be more powerful in maintaining a slow speed than the brakes? In fact, this is one of the keys to driving on ice, the accelerator not the brakes. And if you have a regenerative braking system, it is even better. Start slowly and get a grip. For traction and control, the first thing you need is a Good Grip With The Road (The Way). The second thing you need is to Control Your Speed.

The third thing is to put your Two Hands On The Steering Wheel. We like to drive with one hand, it makes us look cool.  However, if you are driving in slippery conditions you need to put your two hands on the steering wheel. What does this mean to us? It means that you need to take ownership and control of your life.

Prayer: Father, I ask for the grace and the wisdom to bridle my tongue, to slow down and take ownership and control of my life, to be completely hands-on, in Jesus Name. Amen!