God Has a Plan for Your Life
Those of us of the faith world understand this notion of Divine Planning very clearly but there was a time before when we didn’t have a clue about anything. Fortunately for us, God sits at the end of times and looks back at our lives. He would tell us incredible things about the times that we are struggling through in our “right now” moments if we’d listen. Even though it might sound a bit unfair to us that God has such a distinct advantage over the world that He made, what else would you expect of a divine Creator?
Just so you don’t think I am being super judgmental I will use me at 70 years old speaking back to my childhood days of only about 5 years old. If I knew then what I know now perhaps I wouldn’t have fought so hard against God’s plan for me. I totally did not understand what was going on in my life as a child. However, after going through the entire ordeal I get it now. God had a plan in the beginning but the main obstacle that kept it from becoming manifest was, guess who… ME! Since I did not know what He was doing or even who God was I wanted nothing to do with that holier-than-thou stuff.
People, mostly the older ones, would say: God is great! Trust in the Lord God Almighty! Be kind to others! Do unto others as you would have them do unto you! Feed the poor! Submit unto God! Blessed are the meek and those who thirst for righteousness! Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake and on and on and on… Do you think I had a clue about any of what meant? I was the one who was downcast, abused, poor, hungry, hurting, discriminated against, beaten, called derogatory names, and the like. I watched my folks suffer at the hands of wicked people for no reason besides the color of their skin? If I sound a tad bit resentful perhaps God will cut me a little slack? Well, not really because God doesn’t like ugly no matter what, or why!
As we were going through the tunnels of life that God allows us to enter in order to make us into something useful for His purposes it doesn’t usually look fair to our eyes. Why in the world would I agree to be on the bottom end of misery not knowing where my path was leading? If God had a plan for my life back when I was a child going through all that negative stuff then why didn’t He give me a hint of what was going on? Had He shared His plans with me perhaps I would have still found a way to screw them up because at that time it was all about me, my needs, and what I stood to gain or lose.
Until God opens the eyes of your heart to His wisdom and understanding it is impossible to see where He is leading you. He always knew where the path was leading but in your defiance, you were like a wrecking ball banging on every good wall that He was preparing just for you. As you look back over your life you see so many silly mistakes that you made just because you could do so. God said to us, “do not sin and be holy because He is Holy.” But guess what we did, we went on and sinned anyway. This spirit of defiance seems to live in us. We are like a wild animal born free and running wild without a care in the world. All that pure possibility… untamed and untapped until someone sees that uncut gem hidden inside its raw edges.
That is how we appear to God before He has His way with us. Until the eyes of your understanding are opened you don’t have a clue about what He put in you at birth, or what plans He has for you to prosper. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11
Every human baby born was once a child that existed only in possibilities of what might be possible. Had no one took the time and loving care that child could have been almost worthless and a danger to him or her self and to others. But look at what could happen once the proper love and tender care is given to the child. Lift them up and train them in the ways of God and who knows what might be possible. “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6
God knew each of us when we were just newborn infants. He knew what skills, talents, and abilities He had born in us. And He also knew what it would take to cultivate what He placed in us at birth. He knew the end of the plan before the plan was started but we couldn’t see what God saw so time was the only revelation that allowed our potential to unfold. Had we lived in obedience and agreement with God from the beginning perhaps our real potential would not have manifested as it did.
How many years does it take for a stone to turn into a precious diamond? How hot do the flames need to be in order to refine pure solid gold? The Master Craftsman knows what He is doing and what it takes to perfect the right qualities in all of His precious (stones) children. Hidden in each of us is the possibility but without the Master Craftsman, they are only possibilities and essentially worthless. Even though God has a plan for us, His plan doesn’t manifest until the Creator of the plan puts it into motion.
In my warped way of thinking I always wonder why are things so unequal? Why are some given much and some given hardly anything at all? That used to bother me because I was one with lack but due to my lack, I became more motivated to learn how to acquire things. Had things been given to me without working for them I am sure I would not have appreciated the gain. Besides, each body member serves a different function and they are all important towards the function of the entire body. The feet and the eyes do not serve the same purposes but they both are very important to the body. As a member of the body of God, we all serve different functions for His body. All are different but still important for the function of the entire body. Silly me, I no longer question God about such trivial matters. Instead, I relish my opportunity to serve in whatever function that my Lord wishes of me, without judgment, envy, jealousy, or anything of the sort.
So now this 70-year-old man can appreciate all of what God allowed me to go through in order to arrive at this particular point in time where I can be useful to His body. I don’t do a lot of things as well as others but the things that God has me doing are perfect for the talents that He placed in me from the beginning. I know that God has a plan for each of us but that plan will only manifest when the Maker and the made are in agreement. When you are ready for God He has been waiting a lifetime for you to inquire of your distinct purpose. “God has a plan for you to prosper, plans to give you hope and a future,” as Jeremiah wrote thousands of years ago. Selah!
