ARE YOU HOLDING ONTO THE WHEEL?
Cease striving [let go and relax] and know that I am God.
Psalm 46:10
When I was a kid, my little sister and I went to a carnival for the first time in our lives. It seemed so huge and so fun, with awesome rides and food galore. My sister and I wanted to go on the tallest ride we could see—the iconic Ferris wheel. I was excited and somewhat apprehensive as they strapped us into the little pod and closed the hatch.
Inside the Ferris wheel pod, there was a steering wheel. I instinctively grabbed it and held on with nervous energy. When we started up, the pod we were placed in did not rotate like the other pods. Thus, instead of being upright when we reached the top, leisurely enjoying the beautiful night sky, we were totally upside down, facing the ground from what seemed like a mile up to a little kid. Talk about screaming, we were scared beyond belief! We thought at any moment our harnesses would give way, and we would fall splat on the ground. I wanted off that horrible Ferris wheel more than my next breath. In my mind, my pod was broken, and this hellish ride was cruel and unusual punishment. As a kid, I sincerely did not know if I would make it off the ride in one piece.
But you know what happened? In the last minute of the ride, I discovered something important. My pod wasn’t broken. The reason we were upside down was because of my death grip on the steering wheel. Once I took my hands off the wheel, the pod righted itself, and the ride became fun and exciting, not torturous and excruciatingly frightening. The bottom line was this: I was the one putting my sister and me in danger because I would not let go of the wheel.
HAVE YOU LET GO?
The Christian life is an exciting, thrilling, and fulfilling ride with the Lord. But in order to enjoy it, you must let go of the wheel. You must “cease striving” which literally means to let go and relax. You see, you cannot soar in your walk with Jesus Christ until you yield up control to Him. He is God, and you are not. He can be trusted. He knows what He is doing. So, let go of all your problems and cares, cast them on Him and enjoy the ride. Know that He is the God who will see you through, regardless of the circumstances.
Years ago, I heard this analogy. In every Christian’s heart there is a cross and a throne. When self is on the throne, Christ is on the cross … but when Christ is on the throne, self is on the cross.
Choose today to let go of the wheel and yield the throne of your heart to King Jesus. It’s the only way to live.
Love,
Pastor Jeff Schreve
From His Heart Ministries
P.S. I'm always glad to hear from you. Write me at pastorjeff@fromhisheart.org. Follow regular updates on Twitter at @jeffschreve or join me on Facebook.
Dr. Jeff Schreve believes that no matter how badly you may have messed up in life, God still loves you and has a wonderful plan just for you. From His Heart provides real truth, love and hope on over 700 radio stations each day, in 149 countries each week on TV, and is always available online. Pastor Jeff takes no income from this ministry. All donations go to furthering the broadcast outreach. As a listener/viewer supported ministry, we thank you for joining with us to help speak the truth in love to a lost and hurting world. Go to www.fromhisheart.org for more information.
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