Lesli’s grandparents, Madge and Carl Russell, had one of the large floor model TV’s that became so prominent in the 1970’s. When they were well into their eighties, it was fun to watch the two of them battle for control of the TV remote. They were cute and funny about it.
Carl’s weakness was that he would fall asleep while watching his favorite baseball team (the Pittsburgh Pirates), the Honeymooners, or another favorite show that his wife would not have chosen. Once Carl started napping, Madge would simply slip the remote out of his hand and change the channel to something she liked.
Carl figured out that the best way to keep her from taking the remote when he napped was to slip it under his thigh. She would have to wake him up to get it and then he would maintain control.
As a matter of fact, after a hospital stay that left him physically weak, Carl was sitting in his favorite chair watching his favorite show with the remote tucked under his thigh when Madge asked him to change the channel. He did not respond to her. When she went closer to see if she could get the remote, she discovered that he had peacefully slipped into the presence of His Lord.
Madge lived for a couple more years before she would meet Carl in Heaven. During those years, she loved to tell the story of how he peacefully died while guarding the remote from her. It was a part of their dance – a romantic life-long dance she dearly loved and missed. But, the way he went to glory allowed her to remember fondly the jovial, fun-spirited life they shared.
Guess what! At our house, Jon and I (and Lesli’s dad when he visits with us) use the same technique for grabbing power that Carl did. It seems that men pass this tradition of hoarding the remote on to their heirs!
Just like our parents and grandparents, the struggle for control goes far beyond entertainment at home. This weekend at Calvary we will explore the importance of giving up control of the stuff we cannot control anyway. Letting God be God is hard for all of us! But, to live a life of contentment rather than frustration, we need to learn to rest in and rely on God’s sovereignty over others and over life’s circumstances.
Are you tucking control of your life and the people in your life under your “thigh” trying to manage what you can never truly manage? God will challenge each of us Sunday with the last half of James chapter four!
See you at Calvary tomorrow at either 9:00 or 11:00. Also, anyone interested in what the new third service is all about should come to our Third Service Pre-Launch Gathering at 6:00 in the Worship Center tomorrow evening. Mark White will be leading us in worship. Pastor Drew Sams and I will be sharing our vision for what this new service for the summer will look and feel like. Hope to see you sometime tomorrow (Lord willing)!
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