Scripture Reading: “We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps (Proverbs 16:9, NLT).”
Have you ever been asked the question, “Where do you see yourself in ____ years?” Are you actually where you thought you would be ____ years ago?
If you had asked me that question however many years ago I would have told you that I would be working a job that I loved, making enough money to live comfortably. I would be married, with at least one child (hopefully more), a dog or two (maybe a cat) in a nice house. Nothing wrong with this right? Of course not!
Am I there… NOPE! I have a job that I love but no husband, no children, no pets, no home of my own. When you grow up being told you are worthless, stupid, ugly, fat and so many other negaitive things this can send you to a very dark place – and it did. I honestly believed that the reason I didn’t get these things was because the cruel things I was told as I was growing up were true. And because I believed this, I made some bad choices and tried to put a wall up between myself, God and everyone else, because they all must believe this about me, too. This just helped with the downward spiral of loneliness and negativity. I had good days but there were so many more bad days. I wasn’t sure I would ever get out of the hole I felt I was in. My “human” heart told me that my plans didn’t work out because there was something wrong with me. My “Jesus” heart reminded me that there is a reason things did not work out the way I planned them.
You know what I love about God? He can use the simplest of things to teach you the biggest lessons. While organizing the donated school supplies into piles of like items and then into separate piles for each school we were supporting, He made things make sense in such a real way. What I thought was only going to take an hour or two took almost 9 hours! I would get one item organized and felt a sense of accomplishment only to stand up and see all of the other items waiting to be sorted. It was very overwhelming and discouraging; but as frustrated as I was, I realized that if I had just focused on where I was and not worried about what was next it wouldn’t have been so overwhelming and discouraging.
It’s the same way with our plans. We aren’t meant to worry about what is next. It would overwhelm us too much. Instead, the Bible shows us that our God is not only ever-present but that He supplies our every need (Matthew 6:33-34). The Lord promised to never leave nor forsake the Israelites in Deuteronomy 31 – and He makes the same promise to us today. So, with every plan that you and I make, we can trust that God is walking with us every step of the way, determining our steps according to His goodness.
God, help us to be content with where you have us now but still excited about what’s to come. Your plans are so much more amazing than anything we can plan for ourselves, so help us to trust in obedience that Your ways are higher than our ways. Give us strength as we wait on You!