The mind of man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.  Proverbs 16:9

As reflected in the passage above, we often make plans only to have them changed or redirected.  Such is the case today.  I have two posts partially written but I’m not up to the task of creating.  The weather has turned and my body is reacting.  Further recent events in our life have me distracted and unsettled which also affects me physically.  As frustrating as it is, it is a common dilemma in my life.  In an attempt to be more in tune with my physical limitations and not exacerbate the situation, I have decided to reuse a post from two years ago.  It’s not my first choice, but it is the prudent one and a nuance of accepting the realities of my life with some measure of grace.  Change is inevitable and as I contemplate the changes that God has made to various plans throughout my life and the lives of those I love, four reasons that come to mind are: redirection, placement, refinement, and grace.

At times, we as Christians need to be redirected.  Whether the problem is temptation, a lapse in judgement, fear, or outright sin, our Heavenly Father will often intervene to change our course.  One of the most vivid examples that I can offer is Jonah.  God gave Him a mission.  He was to go to Nineveh, warn them that they had forty days to repent of their sin or be overthrown.  Because they were enemies of Israel, Jonah could not abide the thought that they might actually repent and be saved so he got on a ship sailing to Tarshish, ended up in the belly of a fish for three days, and then went to Nineveh to call for their repentance as his Lord had originally directed him.  When our plans are in conflict with Father’s will for us, He will in His mercifully change our path, put impediments in the way, or alter our mindset to pull us back to the right path.  We can never expect God to sanction any of our plans that are opposed to His will for us, but we can always count on His willingness to either redirect us or patiently wait for us to realize the error of our ways and repent.

There are also times when God changes our course to put us in the place that He wants us.  Such was the case of Esther.  He raised this Jewish woman in exile to the position of Queen of Persia and used her to protect His people.  Her cousin Mordecai recognized this and urged her to use her influence by saying:  “And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14)  In fact scripture is full of examples of people whose plans were redirected by their Lord to place them in positions to fulfill a specific purpose.  I have seen this in my own life.  Neither my wife nor I ever had a burning desire to live in Indiana, but we have both considered it an act of God that we live here.  In hind sight, I can see many reasons why He chose to relocate us.  Twenty-eight years later, if asked why we moved to Indiana, I will simply say that it was an act of God.  There is no other reasonable explanation.  More recently, I’ve seen this in our move from Columbus to Indianapolis.  His hand clearly moved to relocate us as twelve weeks ago we had no plans to move and have been here more than a month already.  We trust that God has purpose in this transition as well.

Refinement is another reason our Lord often intervenes and changes our plans.  I’m a planner and admittedly don’t like alter a predetermined course.  I also hate to miss deadlines.   My Creator often uses my illness to teach me to adapt to change with grace and to accept my limitations as part of His plan for me.  I may be a slow learner, but I can see that over time I have become less resistant and expect to see the value of an altered course.    God tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that He is making each of us into a “new creature”.  In order to do that He must refine us as described in Malachi 3:3: “He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord offerings in righteousness.”  While we often like to think that the process of sanctification will be an easy experience, the truth is that change is often painful.  Our character flaws must be revealed and altered, our bad habits and attitudes must be rejected and replaced by God’s principles for living, and we must submit our will to His.  While it is truly a wonderful and blessed experience/process, it is also a painful and often difficult one that yields benefits beyond what we can imagine.  It is pain with divine purpose for in it God gives us a new heart, draws us close and prepares us for eternity with Him.

Finally, there are times when our Heavenly Father changes our plans as a sheer act of kindness.  Sometimes I feel that Jeremiah 29:11 which says: “‘For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope’” is overused, but I’m not sure that it is truly possible as God’s kindnesses permeate every aspect of our lives.  It may be as simple as delaying our departure to avoid an accident, or as monumental as my illness which brought me to a much deeper relationship with Him and everything in between.  Admittedly, our Lord’s salvation and refinement are His ultimate acts of kindness; but He also intervenes in our plans in big and small ways to encourage us or allow us to enjoy unexpected simple pleasures of this life.  Not only is God the sovereign Lord of the universe, but He is also our tender, loving Heavenly Father who wants us to delight in the taste of food, vivid sunrises and sunsets as well as other marvels of His creation, time with our loved ones, and the little ways that He allows us to see Him working on our behalf to encourage us.  We merely need to watch for them to recognize them.

While planning and organization usually make our lives run more smoothly, there are times when our plans are not in our best interest, do not fit with God’s plan for us, need to change to refine us, or should allow us to simply enjoy life with Him more richly.  Part of maturing in faith is learning to yield to His redirection understanding that He has good reason that He may or may not share with us.  It is patiently enduring the unplanned and trusting in His love for us.  James encourages us to plan with open minds when he writes:  “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.’  Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.  Instead, you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.’”  Yes we plan, but graciously accepting God’s amendments to our intent recognizes that He is, in fact, directing our path with purpose.  In those moments… especially when we don’t understand why, our behavior testifies that  we trust  His wisdom, character and love for us knowing that it is for our good and His glory.

Submit to God and be at peace with Him,

Will

If you have been helped by this post, please share it using the links below.