Plan? What plan? Me? Have a PLAN????

I'm an off the cuff kinda gal.  I'm pretty good at going with the flow.  I usually don't know, from one day to the next, what life is going to throw at me.  Being flexible is definitely a gift! However, sometimes I really do need a plan.  When I have a photography job, it's important to at least have a date and time written down so I don't forget.  If I'm going to Disney to see Emily, I need know when I'm going so she can schedule her days off.  If I'm going out of town, a definite place to stay is rather important, lol.  But, what about a LIFE plan?  How important is that?

I'll be honest.  Having a long term plan for my life went out the window years ago.  I never planned to have cancer.  Nor did I plan to get divorced...or remarried...or divorced again.  I didn't plan to have my third child at the age of 36.  I didn't plan to raise her alone.  I didn't plan soooo many things about my life.  Nonetheless, I'm thankful for every one of those experiences!  Each one has helped to make me into the person I am today.  Nope.  None of those things were part of my plan.  Yet, in all of my life, since before I was born, God had a plan!

Growing up, one of my favorite verses was Jeremiah 29:11.  I quote it alot!  The NIV version states, "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."  That was such an awesome idea for me.  That God had my whole life mapped out for me before one day of it ever came to be.  I was such a Polyanna when I was young!  Life was going to be beautiful and amazing...all because God had it planned out for me!  I thought I could just kick back and enjoy the ride.  Yeah...Not so much!  Little did I realize back then, that life requires participation...

I can't point out the day when I realized there was more to this verse than an Almighty God up there orchestrating my life like a grand puppeteer.  I can, however, remember moments of lashing out at God.  "You had a plan!!!  Was THIS in it?  HONESTLY?"  What about that hope?," I'd asked...feeling utterly hopeless.  "What about a future?"   Harsh, I know.  But, I'm real!  I'm human!  How many of you have had that same conversation with God, whether or not you admit it?  Did God really plan for me to experience hurt and pain?  Of course not!  Sin in the world causes that, but God does use all of our suffering for His glory...if we let Him!

I know that sounds confusing.  God is such a great big God.  Why can't He reach down and stop anything that causes us pain?  Because of a little thing called free will, and a not so little thing called sin.  The world is full it, and man is innately sinful.  Romans 3:23 tells us that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."  It separates us from Him.  However, if we read on to verse 24, it says that we are also "justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus."  Furthermore, according to John 3:16, God loved us soooo much that he gave his one and only Son, and if we believe in him, we won't perish but have eternal life.  His grace and salvation are just two of the AMAZING gifts He has given us.  But what does that have to do with free will?

Well, choosing to accept God as our Lord and savior is one way we practice free will.  We have to choose Him.  We also make choices every day that affect our lives.  Each of these choices, whether directly or indirectly, have a profound impact on how our life will be.  No...I'm not saying everything that happens in our life is because of our own choices....but many of them are because of someone's choice, whether it's yours or not.  Nonetheless, how we react IS our choice.  We have the free will to choose to follow God or go our own way.  It's our decision.  We can wallow in our own emotions, our own self pity, our own anger, and even unforgiveness.  Or, we can choose to allow God to heal us, deliver us, and use each of these experiences to bless and encourage someone else.  

As I've gotten older and allowed God to work on my spiritual maturity, I have come to see Jeremiah 29:11 in a new light.  I've also stopped taking it out of context and using it as a verse that meets my immature idea of what I want it to mean.  If you read it as a whole, with verses 12-14, it takes on a completely different meaning.  "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.  Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.  You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.  I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity.  I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”

Remember earlier when I said Life requires participation?  Well, here it is.  I have to actually seek a relationship with God.  I have to pray, read His word, trust Him in all I do.  Moreover, I must seek him wholeheartedly.  THAT is God's plan for my life.  To love him, spend time with Him, serve Him.  Only then will the rest of those promises come to pass.  He really does want the best for us, His children.  He does have a plan that only He can see.  He knows what my future holds.  He also knows that my relationship with Him will determine how I handle whatever comes next.  I want those plans He has for me.  I desire to make Godly choices and receive His best!  I'm so glad He brings me back from the exiles of sin, despair, and oppression and back into the comfort of His arms.  So, do I have a plan?  Not always.  That's ok.  God does!  And His plans are PERFECT!