March 25, 2026

What Happens When You Choose Trust Over Control

Show Notes
Transcript

In this powerful and faith-filled episode of Purpose of Heart, we dive into the quiet struggle many believers face—control. Not the obvious kind, but the subtle, internal need to manage outcomes, predict the future, and protect ourselves from uncertainty.
Through heartfelt reflection and biblical truth, this episode explores what it truly means to choose trust over control. Anchored in Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV), you’ll be reminded that God never asked you to understand everything—He asked you to trust Him.
If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed, anxious, or exhausted from trying to hold everything together, this conversation will gently guide you back to a place of surrender, peace, and confidence in God’s character.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

Why control is often rooted in fear and anxiety
The difference between preparation and self-reliance
How trusting God brings peace—even without clarity
What biblical surrender really looks like (through Jesus in Gethsemane)
Practical ways to release control and deepen your trust in God
How to shift from panic to prayer in moments of uncertainty
Why God’s direction is always better than our own understanding

Key Scriptures (NKJV)

Proverbs 3:5-6 — Trusting God over our own understanding
Psalm 20:7 — Where true trust should be placed
Isaiah 26:3 — Perfect peace through trust
Luke 22:42 — Jesus models surrender
Philippians 4:6-7 — From anxiety to peace through prayer
Romans 12:18 — Releasing control in relationships
Psalm 37:5 — Trusting God with outcomes
Jeremiah 17:7-8 — Stability through trust in God

Key Takeaways

Control may feel safe, but it ultimately leads to exhaustion
Trust is not a feeling—it’s a daily choice rooted in God’s character
Peace is found not in clarity, but in surrender
You were never meant to carry the weight of everything
When you release control, you make room for God to lead with wisdom and purpose

Reflection Question

Where in your life are you trying to control the outcome instead of trusting God with it?

Practical Application

Pause and pray when anxiety rises instead of immediately reacting
Ask: “Is this mine to manage, or is this God’s?”
Speak truth over your situation: “Lord, I trust You with this.”
Reflect on past moments where God has been faithful
Choose obedience—even when you don’t have all the answers

Closing Encouragement

When you choose trust over control, you exchange pressure for peace, striving for rest, and fear for stability. God is not asking you to figure everything out, He’s inviting you to walk with Him, one step at a time.

WEBVTT

00:00:02.080 --> 00:00:08.640
Welcome to Purpose of Heart of the Podcast, where real stories meet God's promises.

00:00:09.119 --> 00:00:15.839
I'm Priscilla Allman, and every week we dive into powerful conversations about purpose and depression.

00:00:19.839 --> 00:00:20.800
And more.

00:00:21.519 --> 00:00:27.280
If you've ever asked God, where are you in this?

00:00:28.399 --> 00:00:30.719
You're in the right place.

00:00:31.679 --> 00:00:33.280
Be sure to follow the show.

00:00:33.759 --> 00:00:37.200
And let's find purpose together.

00:00:38.399 --> 00:00:38.719
Hi.

00:00:39.600 --> 00:00:43.200
And welcome back to Purpose of Heart, the podcast.

00:00:43.439 --> 00:01:00.880
I'm your host, Priscilla Allman, and today we're gonna talk about something we all probably struggle with at some point in time in our lives, if not most of it, even if we really don't want to admit.

00:01:02.240 --> 00:01:04.799
And that thing is control.

00:01:06.159 --> 00:01:12.319
Not the obvious kind, though, not the loud, demanding kind, the quiet kind.

00:01:13.200 --> 00:01:17.040
The kind that tries to manage outcomes.

00:01:17.760 --> 00:01:25.760
The kind that replays conversations, the kind that wants certainty before obedience.

00:01:26.159 --> 00:01:30.879
The kind that says, I'll trust God as long as I can.

00:01:33.920 --> 00:01:38.000
I'll trust God as long as such and such happens.

00:01:38.640 --> 00:01:44.560
I'll trust God as long as I can steer clear of this or go in this direction.

00:01:46.400 --> 00:01:49.680
So here's our question for today.

00:01:50.480 --> 00:01:53.760
What happens when you choose trust over control?

00:01:55.040 --> 00:01:58.879
Because that choice changes everything.

00:02:00.879 --> 00:02:04.319
Let's be honest, control feels safe, right?

00:02:04.879 --> 00:02:06.879
But it's really an illusion.

00:02:07.439 --> 00:02:18.960
If I can plan enough, if I can prepare enough, if I can't anticipate and overthink every possible scenario, then maybe I won't get hurt.

00:02:19.199 --> 00:02:20.479
Maybe I won't fail.

00:02:20.639 --> 00:02:22.800
Maybe I won't be disappointed.

00:02:23.439 --> 00:02:30.719
But here's the truth: control often is anxiety in disguise.

00:02:30.960 --> 00:02:34.560
We try to control because we're afraid.

00:02:35.759 --> 00:02:38.319
We don't like unknowns.

00:02:39.120 --> 00:02:45.599
Afraid of loss, afraid of uncertainty, afraid of being vulnerable.

00:02:47.439 --> 00:02:52.960
But this scripture has been coming up quite a bit lately.

00:02:54.080 --> 00:02:55.439
And honestly, you know what?

00:02:55.520 --> 00:03:02.000
It's my grandmother's was her favorite verse and passage of scripture.

00:03:02.479 --> 00:03:04.560
And she did well.

00:03:04.879 --> 00:03:08.639
She lived almost a hundred and one years.

00:03:09.919 --> 00:03:28.000
And growing up around her, I saw how much she placed her faith in God and how much that not only influenced and impacted her life, but also the lives of the people who she mentored and influenced.

00:03:28.960 --> 00:03:32.159
And it's this verse, Proverbs 3, 5 and 6.

00:03:32.800 --> 00:03:37.840
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not unto your own understanding.

00:03:38.080 --> 00:03:43.840
In all your ways, acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths.

00:03:44.560 --> 00:03:46.800
Notice what it doesn't say.

00:03:48.240 --> 00:03:50.800
It doesn't say understand everything first.

00:03:51.520 --> 00:03:55.120
It doesn't say control every detail.

00:03:55.919 --> 00:03:58.159
It says trust.

00:04:01.280 --> 00:04:04.240
And sometimes that can be hard.

00:04:04.800 --> 00:04:18.480
It can be hard in life, especially sometimes if things have gone wrong or went sideways or however you didn't think it was gonna go or shouldn't have gone or this, that, and the next.

00:04:21.680 --> 00:04:30.800
But one thing that I try to remind myself of is the character of who I am trusting in.

00:04:33.600 --> 00:04:48.639
If I'm trusting that God is good, that he loves me, that he wants good things for me, that he's a good father, that wants to give his children good gifts, that he has good plans for my life.

00:04:50.399 --> 00:05:06.160
And I repeat those scriptures to myself, especially in times where the thing that I'm doing is new or a little scary, or I'm going and doing things that no one I know has ever done before.

00:05:06.399 --> 00:05:09.360
Sort of going in uncharted pathways.

00:05:11.120 --> 00:05:29.920
Knowing in who I am, in whom I'm put putting my trust, is a helpful way in order to stay grounded and make this verse, right, to trust in him with all of my heart, right?

00:05:30.000 --> 00:05:39.199
And not lean into my own understanding, to always acknowledge him, knowing that he wants to direct my path.

00:05:40.800 --> 00:05:46.800
One of the biggest misconceptions about trust is that it's emotional.

00:05:48.560 --> 00:05:51.199
But biblical trust is a choice.

00:05:52.160 --> 00:05:58.800
It's choosing to rely on God's character when the circumstances are unclear.

00:06:00.639 --> 00:06:11.680
Psalms 27 says, some trust in chariots, some in horses, but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.

00:06:12.879 --> 00:06:23.680
In modern language, we could say, some trust in strategies, some trust in savings accounts, some trust in connections, some trust in influence.

00:06:24.319 --> 00:06:26.720
But we will trust in the Lord.

00:06:27.040 --> 00:06:28.959
Now don't get me wrong.

00:06:29.839 --> 00:06:32.480
That doesn't mean that preparation is wrong.

00:06:32.800 --> 00:06:33.120
Okay?

00:06:33.759 --> 00:06:36.560
Like if you have a test, you need to study.

00:06:36.800 --> 00:06:40.079
You do not need to be out here saying, I'm just trusting in the Lord.

00:06:40.319 --> 00:06:40.639
No.

00:06:43.279 --> 00:06:47.279
He's not just gonna give you answers by osmosis, okay?

00:06:47.759 --> 00:06:57.360
If there's something that you legitimately need to prepare for and make ready, right, you need to do your due diligence.

00:06:58.000 --> 00:07:06.720
But it means that our confidence doesn't rest in our preparation and the things that we can do alone.

00:07:09.120 --> 00:07:13.279
Control exhausts, trust restores.

00:07:14.639 --> 00:07:18.959
Have you ever noticed how exhausting it is to try and control everything?

00:07:20.240 --> 00:07:22.000
Do you know why, my friend?

00:07:23.279 --> 00:07:25.279
It's because we can't.

00:07:26.160 --> 00:07:28.000
We don't have that kind of power.

00:07:30.240 --> 00:07:32.160
So why are we pretending?

00:07:33.439 --> 00:07:33.839
Right?

00:07:33.920 --> 00:07:38.720
Like we don't even control our own breathing.

00:07:39.839 --> 00:07:53.040
It's only the Lord's mercy is that we wake up every morning and our heart beats through the night that we, you know, wake up and can walk and move around and do whatever it is that we do.

00:07:53.279 --> 00:07:54.879
We don't control that.

00:07:56.480 --> 00:08:00.000
We don't have a choice as to whether our heart beats.

00:08:01.120 --> 00:08:04.879
We're always being sustained by him.

00:08:08.079 --> 00:08:11.519
Control requires constant mental energy.

00:08:11.920 --> 00:08:15.839
And it kind of keeps you in the loop of what if?

00:08:17.439 --> 00:08:20.160
Trust, on the other hand, creates room to breathe.

00:08:20.399 --> 00:08:22.240
Isaiah 26, 3.

00:08:22.480 --> 00:08:29.920
You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.

00:08:30.560 --> 00:08:36.639
Peace follows trust, not clarity, not control, peace.

00:08:37.440 --> 00:08:53.519
When you choose trust over control, your nervous system calms, your thoughts soften, and your striving decreases because you realize you were never meant to carry the weight of everything.

00:08:56.879 --> 00:09:04.559
If anyone had a reason to try and control the outcome, it was Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.

00:09:05.200 --> 00:09:07.440
Luke 22, 42.

00:09:07.679 --> 00:09:11.279
Father, if it is your will, take this cup away from me.

00:09:11.440 --> 00:09:15.039
Nevertheless, not my will but yours be done.

00:09:16.720 --> 00:09:20.159
Jesus modeled surrender.

00:09:21.440 --> 00:09:28.799
Not denial of difficulty, not pretending it wouldn't hurt or be an awful thing.

00:09:31.519 --> 00:09:40.639
But surrendering the outcome control of the outcome to the Father, knowing why he was doing what he was doing for the love of us.

00:09:41.759 --> 00:09:50.399
And here's what's powerful: it wasn't weakness, it was strength rooted in relationship.

00:09:52.000 --> 00:09:53.759
Let's make this practical.

00:09:54.000 --> 00:09:56.960
What gonna happen when we release control?

00:09:59.919 --> 00:10:02.240
Your reactions can become calmer.

00:10:02.480 --> 00:10:05.440
Instead of panicking, you pause.

00:10:06.000 --> 00:10:08.960
Philippians 4, 6 to 7.

00:10:09.200 --> 00:10:24.000
Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

00:10:25.200 --> 00:10:30.159
Trust turns panic into prayer.

00:10:34.159 --> 00:10:34.799
Right?

00:10:35.120 --> 00:10:37.600
And think about what a promise this is.

00:10:39.600 --> 00:10:42.639
We're told to be anxious for nothing.

00:10:43.519 --> 00:10:55.120
And we're told by prayer, by supplication, by asking with giving thanks, we can let our requests be made known unto God.

00:10:55.279 --> 00:11:05.840
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, like we can't understand this, will guard our hearts and minds in Him.

00:11:08.799 --> 00:11:11.919
Control often strains relationships, right?

00:11:12.080 --> 00:11:21.039
We try to manage people's responses, we try to shape outcomes or predict reactions, but trust allows space.

00:11:22.000 --> 00:11:29.039
Romans 12, 18, if it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.

00:11:30.399 --> 00:11:34.240
Notice the phrase, as much as depends on you.

00:11:35.279 --> 00:11:38.960
Trust accepts that not everything depends on you.

00:11:42.960 --> 00:11:49.360
When you trust more, you stop forcing what God hasn't confirmed.

00:11:50.080 --> 00:11:56.480
Sometimes control can look like pushing doors open, right?

00:11:56.879 --> 00:12:03.360
Making things happen, using your connections, doing the things that you need to do.

00:12:04.159 --> 00:12:06.559
But trust waits for alignment.

00:12:06.879 --> 00:12:10.080
Psalm 37, 5, commit your way to the Lord.

00:12:10.320 --> 00:12:13.679
Trust also in him, and he shall bring it to pass.

00:12:14.320 --> 00:12:18.960
When something is truly from God, you don't have to manipulate it into existence.

00:12:21.440 --> 00:12:27.200
He will also make a way for you.

00:12:29.919 --> 00:12:36.639
I'm reminded of that song that says, God will make a way where there seems to be no way.

00:12:36.879 --> 00:12:39.600
He works in ways we cannot see.

00:12:40.080 --> 00:12:42.240
He will make a way for me.

00:12:42.559 --> 00:12:46.559
He will be my guide, hold me closely to his side.

00:12:46.879 --> 00:12:51.200
With love and strength for each new day, he will make a way.

00:12:52.480 --> 00:13:01.919
And those lyrics are something that we can remind ourselves with, along with Scripture, that He's for us.

00:13:05.200 --> 00:13:07.919
Why is control so hard to release?

00:13:08.879 --> 00:13:11.519
Let's talk honestly.

00:13:13.039 --> 00:13:20.000
Control can feel responsible, okay, can feel mature or proactive.

00:13:21.120 --> 00:13:26.960
But there's a subtle difference between responsibility and self-reliance.

00:13:27.759 --> 00:13:30.879
Jeremiah 17, 7 through 8.

00:13:31.120 --> 00:13:42.240
Blessed is the man who trust in the Lord and whose hope is in the Lord, for he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, and will not fear when heat comes.

00:13:44.000 --> 00:13:47.039
Trust it doesn't prevent heat.

00:13:49.679 --> 00:13:51.759
It stabilizes you in it.

00:14:14.720 --> 00:14:34.000
So when anxiety rises, instead of immediately problem solving, going to all of these other people for so many different opinions or freaking out, pause and pray.

00:14:34.240 --> 00:14:36.080
Ask God for guidance.

00:14:37.600 --> 00:14:42.000
Ask, is this mine to manage, or is it God's?

00:14:44.159 --> 00:14:51.039
Sometimes releasing the outcome verbally to say, like, Lord, I'm trusting you with this.

00:14:51.360 --> 00:15:10.559
But like even if you don't say it out loud, but you think it in your mind, like, Lord, I know you love me, you have plans for good, I'm trusting you to sort of interrupt whatever is going on in your mind.

00:15:12.480 --> 00:15:17.919
Reflect on past moments when God came through for you.

00:15:18.720 --> 00:15:19.200
Right?

00:15:19.519 --> 00:15:25.919
Sometimes this could look like a separate journal of your encounters with God.

00:15:26.399 --> 00:15:54.720
This could also look like if you are reading your Bible and a passage of scripture sort of jumps out at you in a way that it hasn't before, and you sort of write like a little note in the margin, and then as you continue to read and you're going back, and you can see your little notes in your margin to say, like, okay, I remember, you know, what he spoke to me during this time.

00:15:55.120 --> 00:16:05.360
It's not necessarily that that thing that he said at that time is going to be the thing that he's saying to you now, but it's a reminder of the fact that he spoke to you.

00:16:06.080 --> 00:16:09.919
Or a reminder of the fact of something that he did in your life.

00:16:12.960 --> 00:16:19.440
And something hard, friends, choosing obedience without demanding guarantees.

00:16:21.919 --> 00:16:24.240
Trust grows through repetition.

00:16:25.039 --> 00:16:27.360
The more you release, the more you rest.

00:16:31.759 --> 00:16:36.240
When you choose trust over control, you gain peace instead of pressure.

00:16:36.399 --> 00:16:40.960
You gain rest instead of striving, and stability instead of fear.

00:16:42.240 --> 00:16:48.879
Control can promise some safety, but delivers exhaustion.

00:16:49.600 --> 00:16:53.519
Trust promises surrender, but delivers peace.

00:16:54.879 --> 00:16:57.360
And you know what the beautiful truth is?

00:16:58.480 --> 00:17:05.359
And the thing that we kind of know but don't often like to fully admit.

00:17:07.039 --> 00:17:30.079
The same way we are incapable of causing our heart to beat throughout the night while we sleep or to wake up in the morning, God is more than capable of directing our lives, and He'd do a much better job than we could ever do of it either.

00:17:32.559 --> 00:17:52.799
Until next time, friends, thank you for joining me on this episode of Purpose of Heart the Podcast, reminding you that when we release control, we make room for God to lead with wisdom, peace, and purpose.

00:17:53.279 --> 00:17:55.279
Until next time, friends.

00:17:56.960 --> 00:18:04.480
Thanks for listening to Purpose of Heart the Podcast at www.purpose of heartpodcast.com.

00:18:05.119 --> 00:18:08.960
Make sure you hit that subscribe button so you never miss an episode.

00:18:09.119 --> 00:18:13.920
There's so much more God is doing, and I don't want you to miss a thing.

00:18:14.240 --> 00:18:20.000
Thank you in advance for the reviews and shares that help this message reach more hearts.

00:18:20.240 --> 00:18:24.240
I can't wait to walk with you again in next week's episode.

00:18:24.559 --> 00:18:25.519
See you there.

What Happens When You Choose Trust Over Control

Listen On

Support On

Recent Episodes