Noah glanced over at Joan. Chin in hand, she listened raptly to Jack’s spiel, though she probably had no idea what Jack was talking about. Noah let his eyes jump from one woman to the other, taking in the contrast. He loved Joan, but Marcia—Marcia intrigued him. Though nearly ten years older than Joan and in many ways far less attractive, she exuded a kind of mystery that drew him to her. That and the legs—“Is there anything on your mind, Noah? You seem particularly lost today in your own world.”

Noah almost jumped at Jack’s question but caught himself. “No, Jack. Sorry if I wasn’t paying attention. I may have been wandering back to the slavish lusts of the day’s business.” The group laughed. Joan blushed. But Noah merely smiled and looked back at Marcia. For just an instant, she caught his gaze, then dropped her eyes and turned awkwardly toward Jack. It was the first time he had seen her lose composure.

Noah noticed a slight rise in Jack’s chest, a tightening of his hands, a pinkish cast creeping across his left cheek. But Jack smiled. “Well, Noah, I suspect a whole lot more is going on in that sharp mind of yours than you are going to tell us.” Noah looked at the Bible on his lap. He felt no pressure to respond to Jack’s comment. He felt on top of things, in control. On the whole, it had been a good day, and he was eager for sleep. Sweet sleep.

Relieved when the Bible study was over, Noah walked to the parking lot slightly ahead of Joan. When he reached the space where he had parked the car, he found only a note held in place by a large stone.

The car was gone.

The note said: “Your car was parked in an unauthorized spot. It can be retrieved at the 285 Garage off Wadsworth and 285. Fee is $100—cash only.”

The Idol: “I Can Control My World”

We all tend to operate out of a faulty assumption that looks something like this: “If only I could control my world, life would be manageable and have meaning and purpose.”

Related to that assumption is an equally faulty one: “I ought to be able to control my world.”

Before you dismiss that last statement too readily, think about your life.

How much energy do you spend trying to manage your family life, your job, your life at church, your relationships? As you answer this question, you may come to realize you have sought the power to control your life with the passion of idol worship.

We all want control over the chaos of our lives. We don’t like unwelcome surprises, and we plan and work hard to keep them at bay. We think ahead about the consequences of our actions, and we are not pleased when someone—a child, a friend, a stranger—disrupts whatever order we’ve established in our lives.

We often try to gain control through rules. Consider all the rules that govern our lives. We have our daily “to do” lists—laundry, food preparation, washing dishes, driving children to school, keeping our bodies in shape. At work, we have sales to make, forms to fill out, patients to see, classes to teach. We have rules of ethics, rules of behavior.