The Cost of Control: Why We Crave It, the Anxiety It Gives Us, and the Real Power God Promises

by Sharon Hodde Miller

Overview

We all wish we had more control. When our relationships are strained, when our bodies refuse to cooperate, when the future is uncertain, control promises security and peace. If only I were in charge, we dream. And this illusion seems more attainable than ever. Technology, science, medicine, and the internet all promise us ever-increasing mastery over our world.

The problem is, control is a "devil's deal." The more we seek it, the more it betrays us. In place of predictability, it gives us anxiety. In place of certainty, it creates more complexity. And in place of unity, it divides. It's not just that we cannot control things; it's that we break them even more when we try.

Thankfully the answer to our craving is not simply to "let go and let God." When our kids aren't listening, when our loved ones are self-destructing, or when our health is declining, we don't have to scramble after control, nor do we have to throw up our hands. Instead, God has given us a better tool.

In this culturally insightful and eye-opening book, Sharon Hodde Miller helps us discover the real power God has given us in Christ, to exercise influence over ourselves and our lives.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780801094934
Publisher:	Baker Publishing Group
Publication date:	08/16/2022
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	80,535
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Sharon Hodde Miller, PhD, is teaching pastor at Bright City Church in Durham, North Carolina, which she cofounded with her husband, Ike. The author of Free of Me and Nice, Miller has blogged at SheWorships.com for over ten years, has been a regular contributor to Propel, Her.meneutics, and She Reads Truth, and has written for Relevant, Christianity Today, (in)courage, and many other publications and blogs. She lives with Ike and their three children in Durham, North Carolina.

Table of Contents

Preface 11

Introduction 15

Part I Why We Control

1 The Illusion of Control 25

2 How We Got Here 36

Part II How We Control

3 Knowledge and Information 49

4 Power 61

5 Money 74

6 Autonomy 84

7 Theology 93

8 Shame 102

Part III What It Costs Us

9 Broken Relationships: The Toxic Impact of Controlling Other People 113

10 Burnout: The Never-Ending Work of Controlling Our Circumstances 123

11 Body Shame: The Impossible Ideal of Controlling Our Bodies 133

12 Anxiety: The Balancing Act of Controlling Our Reputations 146

13 Exhaustion: The Surprising Striving of Controlling Our Identities 156

Part IV The Real Power God Promises

14 The Power of Agency 167

15 The One Thing We Can Control 180

Acknowledgments 193

Notes 195

About the Author 201