Cheri Strange, Christian Speaker and Author

     I recently found myself in need of an Emergency haircut. I took her first available slot. While my hair was being washed, one of the stylists plopped down in the chair next to mine. She asked one of the other ladies to begin washing her hair. Orders in regard to what she wanted done with her wet hair commenced.  It was to be red all over – a rich red. However, in the front, she had identified two areas she wanted streaked with something else. (It was hard to eavesdrop with my head in the sink). Curious, I strained to turn her way. She caught my eye and invited me into her world by declaring, “Honey, when we can’t control our lives, we can control our hair.” Pointing to her hair (specifically the part intended for streaking) she added in a boisterous voice, “And I need to GET SOME CONTROL!” I gave her my approval with a solid, “AMEN, Sister.”

     I was, admittedly, sitting in the chair doing the same thing: establishing some control of the little piece of life I could. However, I took a different approach. No color. No streaking. Just plain Brown. I’m not even sure you could call it a cut – but a slight trim on the same “do.” I won’t need to return next week to treat my mega-fast growing roots, no Styling Remorse – absolutely NO uninvited change. Ahhhh……….control….at least until I get to the car…

     Maybe what we are really saying when we go to the hair salon is not, “I have GOT to get a haircut,” but rather, “I cannot go another minute like this. I have GOT to get some CONTROL from somewhere – I’ll try my hair!”

     Life is a constant stream of stress – most of which is completely out our control. Maybe when I find myself so desperate to get my plain brown–don’t-change-a-thing-slight-trim that I take the “First Available” appointment – I should remember my –red-headed-streaked–control-seeking colleague. What I think I need is some control. But what I really need is to take some time to spend with Jesus --- surrendering my need for control --- hair and all.