Whose control?

"When Samuel grew old, he made his sons judges in Israel. The elder son was named Joel and the younger one Abijah; they were judges in Beersheba. But they did not follow their father's example; they were interested only in making money, so they accepted bribes and did not decide cases honestly.

Then all the leaders of Israel met together, went to Samuel in Ramah, and said to him, “Look, you are getting old and your sons don't follow your example. So then, appoint a king to rule over us, so that we will have a king, as other countries have.”"

~ 1 Samuel 8.1-5 GNB

Unfortunately for Samuel, his sons grew up to be bad people like his predecessor's - Eli's - sons. The Israelites wanted a way out, so they asked for a kig. An odd choice, since they knew full well that kingship was handed down within the family. Did they not know that they could end up in the same situation again?

Probably their intent was to depose Samuel and keep the option open for succession. God's judge could only be chosen by God and they had no say. But a king was someone they could overthrow, if they did not like the king. Or so they thought.

They thought they could wrest control out of God's hand.

And history proved their mistake.

Dear God
you have complete control
over my life
help to remember
and to yield to you