God’s Plan 

   “You had scrutinized my every action, all were recorded in your book, my days listed and determined even before the first of them occurred.” (Psalm 139: 16) 

   The God who saw our every action and determined all our days before even one came to be, has a plan for us.  His plan is for our good, to lead us to His heavenly kingdom.  We will be tested, we will be tried in this plan of His, but He will give us the courage and the strength to overcome all tests and trials.  Our part is to agree to follow the plan He has for us.

   Too many times we become convinced that we know God’s plan when it is really our plan, not God’s, that we want to follow.  We grow frustrated because God isn’t allowing us to follow His plan; but it’s not His plan, it’s ours.  So how do we know God’s plan for us?

   Many think they can teach us how to know God’s will.  There are hundreds of books telling us how we can know His will for us.  I’m sure there are some that are of some help, but I suspect most of them are of value only to the author’s bank account; there is no foolproof way of understanding God and His will.

   What is needed is humility, the recognition that we are clay, and He is the potter.  We did not make ourselves, God did.  And He did so with a purpose.  If we listen He will share that purpose with us.  But beware, it may be far different from what you might wish it to be.

   The other thing we must remember is that God’s plans do not change.  Like Him, they are eternal and unchangeable.  We can’t bargain, we can’t exchange one plan for another.  We can only accept or reject the plan He has for us.  There are no other options.

   So again, the question is, “How am I to know God’s will for me?”  In my mind, the answer is inner peace and contentment.  If my life is one of constant frustration and anxiety I am most likely far from His will.  When I accept what each day brings, both the good and the bad, with thanksgiving, offering all to Him with love, I am following His plan for me.  When I can weather the storms that may come, always keeping the peace of God within me, I am following His will.