The Real Fight Isn’t Faith—It’s Control

Have you ever prayed a prayer that goes something like…

“God I trust you… but”

Maybe it’s just me, but I find myself saying, “But God” a lot. It’s probably me—I have been known to be a control freak (ask my husband).

Because of that, I always thought I struggled with faith—like somehow people had more of it than me. But I am beginning to wonder if I don’t have a faith issue—I have a control issue.

As a business owner—I feel myself saying “But God” even more.

• But God, why aren’t I getting more customers? I am doing what you said.

• But God, why did You have me start this business to struggle so much?

• But God, why are our finances in the dumpster? I am doing what you said.

And then, as a leader, you feel people questioning you—or even judging you.

It’s easy to feel constantly not good enough. And the worst part is your “failures” are at times so public.

And then comes the, But God, where are you?

You start to question your assignment, and if God ever called you to this place.

Maybe you too have felt this—and you wouldn’t be the first.

King David (the famous guy in the Bible) felt it too.

When You Feel The Pain

Psalm 3 was written during one of David’s most painful seasons—not when a foreign nation attacked, but when his own son, Absalom, led a rebellion against him. (In my opinion, a “But God” moment.)

David wasn’t just losing a kingdom.
He was losing his family, his future, his sense of stability.

He was a leader under pressure.
A father betrayed.
A man of faith surrounded by doubt.

“Adonai, how many enemies I have!
How countless are those attacking me!
How countless those who say of me, ‘There is no salvation for him in God.’”
— Psalm 3:1–2

The people weren’t just saying David had lost.
They were saying God had abandoned him. That covenant faith had failed. That he hadn’t been called.

And as a leader—especially one who followed God—that is when all your insecurities really surface… when others echo your own fears.

David’s Response Shocked Me

Here’s what gets me: David doesn’t ask to be rescued first. He didn’t lead with “But God.”

He doesn’t open with:

“God, get me out of this!”

“This is not what I had planned.”

Instead, he makes a declaration:

“But you, Adonai, are a shield for me…”
— Psalm 3:3

In Hebrew, that word shield is magen (מָגֵן)—and it’s not just a military term.
It’s a covenant word.

It’s the same word God used when He told Abraham:

“I am your shield, your very great reward.” — Genesis 15:1

David isn’t just saying, “Protect me.”
He’s saying, “I know who You are to me—even when nothing feels protected.”

That’s the real prayer.
Not, “But God, get me out.”
But, “But God, I remember who You are—and who I am in You.”

We Often Don’t Have a Faith Problem. We Have a Control Problem.

When I read David’s prayer, I realize the real fight for most of us is not: “Can You do this, God?”

It’s: “Will You? And will You do it the way I want… when I want?”

We don’t wrestle with whether God is able.
We wrestle with whether He’s willing—and whether we’re okay if His version of protection looks different than ours.

The result?
We panic.
We hustle.
We try to force God to align with our plans.

But David did the opposite.

Not only did he remind himself that God had the situation under control.
He laid down and slept.

“I lay down and slept, then woke up again, because Adonai sustains me.” — Psalm 3:5

I don’t know about you, but in the middle of my “But God” moments when I want out—sleep is typically the last thing on my mind.

But at that moment (remember, people were hunting him—it wasn’t just a small business problem) —he slept.

That’s not passivity. That’s trust.
That’s surrender.

The Pattern For Us

David’s prayer in Psalm 3 isn’t unique—it’s the pattern all throughout Scripture.

Think about it:

• Job, covered in loss, declared: “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him.”

• Jehoshaphat, facing an army, said: “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on You.”

• Jesus, sweating blood in the garden, said: “Not My will, but Yours be done.”

Each of them could have prayed: “But God, get me out.”
But instead, they prayed: “But God, I remember who You are. I trust You—even here.”

They didn’t question His protection or His provision.
They leaned in and reminded themselves: God has them—right there in the struggle.

Those prayers didn’t always change the circumstance immediately. But they changed the person inside the circumstance.

And that’s often what God is after.

Who You Are Is Most Important

When you’re building a business, managing a team, stewarding clients—it’s easy to forget: who you are becoming is what God cares about the most.

And remember:

• You’re not just leading—you’re being led.

• You’re not just providing—you’re being provided for.

I think sometimes God will allow the pressure to expose where we’ve taken control—so He can remind us that who we are is more important than anything we do.

He’s not always going to remove us from the wilderness seasons when we would like Him to.
Sometimes, He’s forming us in it. And often preparing us through it.

He would never take the blessing out of the pressure—because He sees things we don’t.
But He will ALWAYS:

• Provide what you need.

• Protect what matters.

Maybe not in the way you would want.
But that’s why He is God and we are not. His ways are higher than ours.

What Our Prayers Can Turn Into

So next time you start to pray a “But God” prayer, take an example from David in Psalm 3.

Don’t just pray: “But God, get me out.”

Start praying:

“But God, I know who You are.
You are my shield—my magen.
Even if I feel surrounded, I am covered by Your covenant.
I know I can only plant and water, but You bring the growth in Your time.
I don’t need to force anything—just walk in trust and be obedient to what You ask of me.”

When You Declare His Covenant, Everything Changes

Circumstances might not change right away. (They probably won’t.)

But something changes inside you.

And you have peace and joy in the middle of the wilderness as you remember…

• Your God is your protection.

• Your God is your provision.

• And while the circumstances don’t feel good at the moment, there is purpose in the pain and reason for the journey.

So not only can you have trust—but you can give up your control to Someone who is far wiser than you.

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