GOD’S PLAN, NOT OURS
Have you ever planned and carried out that plan just to feel differently about it afterward? Goodness, everything was riding on that one big moment, yet it fell flat. What happened? Did we misunderstand? It seemed perfect, but where do we go from here?
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During the
holidays, we plan changes we’d like to make in the new year and contemplate our
future. We’re excited about fresh prospects and making the most of every
opportunity. However, as our plans come to fruition, sometimes they aren’t what
we expected, and we’re dumbfounded.
That’s when
we must take a step back and remember, as Jeremiah did, “…the way of man is
not in himself—it is not in man who walks to direct his own steps.”[1]
How did
Jeremiah know this truth?
Jeremiah
was the son of the priest, Hilkiah. He was too young to be a priest himself
since thirty was the age for entering the priesthood. Yet, Jeremiah studied and
believed God’s Word. In it, he saw that the preparations of the heart—you know,
the plans we make—belong to us, but the answer of the tongue and the steps we
take are of the Lord. How, then, can we understand our own way?[2]
When the
LORD called Jeremiah, He said, “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew
you; before you were born, I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the
nations.” For the moment, Jeremiah forgot what he had learned and did what
we all do at times; he argued with God. “Ah, Lord God!” he said, “Behold, I cannot speak, for I am
a youth.”
After a
light correction, the Lord put forth His hand, touched Jeremiah’s lips, and
said, “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. See, I have this day set
you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, to
destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant.”[3]
I’m sure
Jeremiah did not foresee his life going this way. And, like us, he had made
plans for his future. But then Almighty God stepped in. Jeremiah saw the Word
he learned take shape. His life and its path were truly in the hand of the
LORD. God opened Jeremiah’s understanding and changed the direction of his life.
Does God
still do this today? Does He really guide our life’s course, or do we exist in
a series of coincidences? Some might say, “No, life is what you make it. Take
charge of your own path.” With this mindset, though, we seem to trample anyone who hinders our climb to success.
For many
years, Judah had made their own plans, went their own way, worshiped other
gods, and cared nothing for their One True and Living God. So, the LORD brought
calamity upon them and carried some captive to Babylon, knowing that in their
affliction, they would seek Him.[4]
Have you ever noticed how trials seem to bring us to our knees in surrender? Yet, without hope, we humans perish. And God knows.
Despair
ravaged the captives. Would the remnant of Judah even survive?
So, as the Most High spoke, Jeremiah penned His comforting and reassuring words and sent this letter to his fellow Judaeans in Babylon. The Almighty had great thoughts and plans for His chosen. He alone would direct their path and give them a future and a hope.[5]
Our LORD
has these same thoughts and plans for us in this new year. We don’t know our
future, but we can know Who holds it and directs our path. Trust Him with all
your heart—for He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the
day of Christ Jesus.[6]
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