Your Plans and God’s Plans

This post is by Briane Pittman Kearns.

There are many plans in a person’s mind, but it is the counsel of the LORD which will stand. (Proverbs 19:21 NET)

At Hello Mornings, we focus on God Time, Plan Time and Move Time. Today we will put two of those concepts together and talk about God Plans, and specifically God Plans versus human plans.

God has His eternal plans and purposes. We have our own plans and purposes. Sometimes they are not in line with God’s plans. God will always accomplish His plans, and personally I want to work with God’s plans instead of against them. Scripture gives us many examples of people who had their own plans, but God worked His plans in their lives instead. Let’s look at a few examples.

The sons of Jacob planned to do away with their annoying brother Joseph by selling him into slavery. They thought they would never see him again. But God had different plans for Joseph. He lifted Joseph from an imprisoned slave to the second in command in Egypt and used him to save his family and a nation from a famine. (Genesis 37-50)

God planned for Moses to lead the Israelites out of slavery from Egypt. But Moses planned to stay in the desert and shepherd his sheep, saying he was “slow of speech and slow of tongue.” (Exodus 4:10) God’s plans prevailed, and Moses led the Israelites out from Egypt and guided them for 40 years.

God planned for the prophet Jonah to go to Ninevah to preach and turn them from their evil ways. Jonah’s plan was to get on a ship and go the other direction. God threw a storm and a whale in Jonah’s path to “redirect” him. Jonah obeyed God, preached to Ninevah and the city was saved from God’s judgment. God’s plan prevailed.

A Persian government official named Haman planned to have all the Jews in the Persian Empire killed. God’s plans put Esther, a young Jewish girl, on the throne as Queen to the King of Persia. Esther’s position and wisdom enabled her to intervene on behalf of her people to save them from destruction. (Esther 1-10)

A Jewish leader named Saul planned to persecute a growing group of people who followed Jesus and claimed He was the promised Messiah. (Acts 7:58, 8:1-3) But God planned for Saul to become a Jesus follower himself. Saul witnessed the resurrected Jesus and placed his faith in Him as Messiah. Saul became Paul, God’s missionary to the Gentiles. God’s plans were fulfilled and Paul spread the message of the Gospel through the ancient world. (Acts 9,13-28)

Some of these people recorded in Scripture made plans that God altered. Others had events beyond their control occur in their lives which God used those to further His plans. God’s plans will always come to fruition.

Because I love the Lord and want to honor Him with my life, my time and my work, I want to make sure that my plans and His plans are the same. I have learned the hard lesson of failing to lay a plan before the Lord and living through a time of correction.

How can we insure that God’s plans become our plans? Submit your plans to God. Write them out and lay them before Him. Literally. Ask for His guidance and for confirmation. Then, be patient and continue to pray. God always answers prayer in His timing. Just because we do not receive an answer does not mean that God is not moving forward towards His answer.

The prophet Jeremiah understood the power and importance of God’s plans. He prayed for guidance and understanding from the Lord, saying “You plan great things and you do mighty deeds. You see everything people do. You reward each of them for the way they live and for the things they do.” (Jeremiah 32:19)

In the past I worried that God’s plans were different from mine. I worried that I would not like His plans. As my faith matured, I learned to delight in the Lord through my relationship with Him. Psalm 37:4 teaches: “Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart.” (NASB) I learned that when I took my joy from my relationship with the Lord, He placed His desires in my heart so that His plans were my plans. I look forward to the plans the Lord has for me because I know they are His very best for my life.

So, prayerfully lay your plans before God and wait for his direction. The Lord wants to bless you through His plans for your life!

The LORD’s decisions stand forever; His plans abide throughout the ages. Psalm 33:11  (NET)

Briane Pittman Kearns is a Jesus loving first born who celebrates being a daughter, wife, mother, grandmother and two time breast cancer survivor.

She loves teaching others that the Bible is relevant for today, her family, laughing with friends, encouraging women in their faith walk and being a southerner. She holds a Master of Arts in Biblical Studies from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary. You can find more of her words at www.BrianePittmanKearns.com, and her teachings on Instagram at www.instagram.com/briane.pittman.kearns.