I have learned the dangers of the deceit known as manipulation during my spiritual journey. Part of practicing rigorous honesty means manipulation is not an option. Manipulation is a dishonest attempt to control others and force our will on people and situations. But one of the most important aspects of a good relation with our Creator is to deny self and to surrender our will to His. So, I learned not to do that. I'm not perfect at it, but manipulation rarely tempts me as a way to solve my problems today....
....with one exception. While I am learning to let go and not try to force things for myself, through manipulation or any other means, when it comes to those I care about it's not so easy. I want to help those I care about and have a desire to "fix it" when there's a problem. More often than not, my thoughts are to use any means necessary to achieve the desired results, including manipulation. But this is not the way, as I was reminded this morning. I don't know why it's so much easier for me to trust God for myself while feeling the need to help God help the ones I care about. It's odd to me because I more often than not found it easier to believe and trust in God's love for others more than God's love for me. But it's as important to trust God with and for the lives of those we care about as it is to trust Him for ourselves. Manipulation is failing to trust God and robs the person we are trying to help of the opportunity to learn that they can trust God and how much God loves them.
I am grateful for the reminder of this and that I was able to step back, drop the manipulation idea and simply pray about the situation I wanted to fix. May we always remember that we can trust God and leave it in His hands, not only for ourselves but for others as well. No matter how it feels, the situation is always better when left in God's hands than in ours.
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