Saturday, March 19, 2016

Does He really have plans for us?

Good morning my sisters-

Well I've just completed my reading, given all my woes to God, drank a cup of coffee and now I'm writing to you.  I read today in 2 Samuel and Psalms and then watched a video about tragedy to triumph.  Thank you Jesus!

You probably are saying, what is she talking about?  I'm talking about all the things that happen in this life, both good and bad.  I love my first cup of coffee and I'm blessed that I can afford it.  I love reading my Bible and I'm blessed because I have a mobile phone with the Bible app and a hard copy Bible.  But mostly, I'm grateful for sitting still and allowing Jesus to come into my heart and soul and to minister to me right where I am.

When hard times fall on us we have two directions we can take, we can give up or we can persevere.  I've never been a quitter, well that's not totally true, I did quit college for a short period of time but I righted that course with a husband and baby on my hip.  I persevered feedings, long nights and numerous papers and when it was all said and done, I got my degree the hard way, with perseverance.  Really, I have never been one to take the easy way.  My mom used to say that I would rather hit a brick wall then go around it.  And I guess if I'm honest, that would characterize my youth. So when I've had a challenge in my life, I've just said, "I got this!"  And for the most part, I always have been able to move through my circumstances. 

Understanding God in some respects was easy for me.  I knew He existed and I knew that He loved me but that didn't mean I always believed it.  I was one of those that thought that He punished me and was mad at me, at least when I was younger.  It wasn't until I grew up that I understood His patience, grace and mercy on my life.  And really, for the most part what it meant to believe in Him for every facet of my life.  As a matter of fact, I think I'm just now learning that lesson. 

Understanding who God is and then living in this world can cause ultimate confusion.  There is no way for us to fully understand His ways and there is no way for us to know what our future holds.  Those are hard concepts for me.  I'm a type A personality that plans, executes and makes things happen.  I'm decisive to a fault and before I make any decision, I weigh out every option, that is until this week. This week God asked me to be obedient and to believe only in Him.  My mind wanted to go in all different directions and still does, if I'm truthful, but one thing remained clear; He has a plan for me.

The world has taught me to look at all the angles, prepare and execute.  God has taught me to sit still, call upon the Holy Spirit for His peace and trust in Him. There is no "I" in my relationship with Jesus.  It's all about Him!  Very different perspectives but we all know that Jesus' way is best.  So as I have spent countless hours this week wondering what the next move will be, I've sat quietly asking Him to show me something and as I looked on Facebook, Our Daily Bread came up and I watched a beautiful video on loss, grief, transformation and God's ultimate challenge to all of us, which is to surrender what we know and live with Him.  Oh and on top of this beautiful story, my life verse was posted, Jeremiah 29:11.

Jeremiah 29:11 has gotten me through tough times in my marriage, in raising my children, in losing my brother and parents and through many rough financial times.  It has taken me from the pit of despair and reminded me always that God had a plan for my life.  As I've sat and pondered tomorrow God has constantly reminded me that He knows what my life is for and that although I have a plan, His is so much better.  So was today a coincidence?  Absolutely not.  Today was affirmation that He has me just where He wants me.  He is making Scripture and His truth a reality in my life and He's reminding me just as Moses did to the Israelites that His way is worth waiting for.  I may still face big obstacles, I may have moments of doubt, worry and anxiety but if I hold onto Him with my whole heart, He will deliver me into His plan and in His timing.

My prayer has been show me my way, O, Lord and make me your woman.  I have had a dream of becoming a leader to women all over the world and spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ.  I never knew how, when or where it would come to fruition.  I still don't know.  But I know one thing, I am His to do with as He wishes and as I learn to be obedient, trust and surrender all, He will show me my way.  It doesn't matter what my resume says or who I work for and it surely doesn't matter how much money I make or what possessions I own, if Jesus isn't in it, it's just not worth it.  Trials come so that He can fulfill Jeremiah 29:11 in our lives.  Without them, we would remain in the world and not in Him.  His goal is our eternal life.  I've come to realize that He may bless us with money to help those less fortunate or He may not.  Remember, we see Jesus in the homeless, the adulterer, the murderer and in the lost, confused, angry and sinful.  He didn't come for the righteous, He came for each of us.

So as I end this post, I'm thinking about all the blessings He bestowed on me as He transformed my heart and made it new.  I'm thinking and anticipating His abounding love and His plan over mine.  I'm thinking that I'm the luckiest girl in the world because Jesus cared enough for me that He saved me and I'm putting my trust that He knows the plans He has for me!

He knows yours too!  Trust in Him and lean not on your own understanding but in everything you do pray and petition Him and above all let Him lead you into your promise land.

Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)
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.

O, Lord we wait on You as You proclaim Your promise on our lives.  Give us patience as You mold us and make us new.  Prepare a table for all the women that are looking for You and praying Jeremiah 29:11.  We know that we will be sifted like sand as You make our paths straight and our hearts pure.  We will take each moment and declare You as our Savior and we will bind all negative thoughts as they creep in.  Our goal is to trust You in all our circumstances. We pray this in Jesus Name, AMEN!

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