Today in history, one political event spawned a National Day Calendar event. Historically, this is the day in 1981 when President Ronald Reagan was shot outside of a Washington, DC hotel by John Hinckley Jr. The .22 caliber bullet pierced the president’s chest, barely missing his heart. “In an impressive feat for a 70-year-old man with a collapsed lung, he walked into George Washington University Hospital under his own power. As he was treated and prepared for surgery, he was in good spirits and quipped to his wife, Nancy, ”Honey, I forgot to duck,” and to his surgeons, “Please tell me you’re Republicans.”1 By April 11, President Reagan returned to the White House.
The National Day Calendar event for this day was birthed in a statement made by Secretary of State Alexander Haig. With the President being rushed to surgery on a rainy afternoon, Haig declared, “As of now, I am in control here in the White House.”2 Vice President George H.W. Bush was out of town at the time of the shooting and was en route to D.C. to be sworn in.
Haig’s statement was picked up by the media and broadcast across the United States, striking a nerve. Though not well received, it was one of those phrases that stuck. That sound bite helped to create National I Am In Control Day. The day isn’t so much about being in charge but rather taking back control of things that have gotten a bit messy in life.
Clutter that is controlling free space has got to go. Bulging closets must be purged. Time and schedules that have gotten out of hand must be reigned in. Being pulled in too many directions must be stopped. We put the brakes on in life.
These are good things to get under control provided we realize that we really aren’t in control of anything. I shared in a devotional a couple of weeks back about a house fire we had in our community. While working with the family, the husband said, “If I’d known our house was going to have burned down, I wouldn’t have painted that room.” He was in control while painting without know that a situation was coming that was out of control, destroying what he thought he controlled.
We definitely want to do our best at “controlling” what we can in life while not putting too much stock in the phrase “I’M in control.” Ultimately, we have to acknowledge the Lord. Colossians 1:15-17 says, “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: (16) For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: (17) And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.”
Greek scholar Dr. Kenneth Wuest quotes Bible Commentator J.B. Lightfoot’s explanation of the phrase “all things consist.” “He [Jesus] is the principle of cohesion in the universe. He impresses upon creation that unity and solidarity which makes it a cosmos (an ordered system) instead of a chaos (an unformed mass). Thus (to take one instance) the action of gravitation, which keeps in their places things fixed and regulates the motions of things moving, is an expression of His mind.”
Daniel recognized the sovereign control of God in all things. He said in Daniel 2:20-22, “Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his: (21) And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding: (22) He revealeth the deep and secret things: he knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him.”
Whatever we are trying to control, even if it is just a messy closet, take it to the Lord and ask His direction through the mess. Relinquish full control of the situation to Him and let Him guide you through. And remember Proverbs 16:9. “A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.”
1https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/president-reagan-shot
2https://www.nationaldaycalendar.com/national-day/national-i-am-in-control-day-march-30
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