Do you like to make plans?
One of my favorite things to do is reach for my black ballpoint pen and write down plans for my day, week, and month ahead. I write small tasks that need to be accomplished and draw big circles around the significant dates I need to remember, like birthdays, doctors’ appointments, and deadlines. Have you ever had one of those big, circled days go differently than you planned?
In those confusing, sometimes difficult moments, we face a tension between our flesh and faith. Do we crave control or do we submit to God’s agenda?
Jeremiah 29:11 says, “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. (NIV)”
When my plans don’t align with God’s plans, candidly, my first reaction to this verse is to pridefully brush it off. “Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know He has plans for me!” But when I slowly drop my guard to accept His promise of hope, I find more peace and joy than I ever had holding onto control.
When we understand the context of this powerful verse, we see that Jeremiah was addressing a group of Jews who were living under the rule of their enemies. Instead of rescuing the Jews immediately, giving them what they thought they wanted when they wanted it, God instead provided hope by telling them He had plans for them. And, not just any plans; thoughtfully orchestrated, divine provisions only God himself could come up with, which eventually led to their rescue in His perfect timing.
Friend, the same is true for us today. We are wildly loved by a Father who loves us too much to submit to our plans. Instead, He offers us hope by promising that His plans can be trusted whether they align with ours or not.
In a world filled with anxiety, social pressures, and fear; we can still trust, follow, and joyfully submit to a God who never fails.