Do you trust God’s plan?
How would you answer that?
I’m embarrassed to say that my answer depends on the day. I consider what kind of day I am having. Then I look at how things are going for me – is life running smoothly or is it challenging? I put stipulations on my faith because I am weak and easily swayed. Does this sound like you? If not, perhaps you can help me in my journey to trust God at all times.
For the last few weeks, my Tuesday posts have centered around purpose. It is an adventure in writing and in listening to what God is teaching me. I am not sure from week to week what He wants me to share with all of you. I just pray and let God speak. To catch up on all the posts, click HERE.
In my post, Reimagining Our Purpose, I asked this question:
And if you are called to be just who you are at any given moment without any fanfare, do you trust God’s plan over trying to create your own?
I threw the question out there hoping that somehow one of you would magically have an answer or that God would show me the easy way to trusting His plans for my life. There is no easy with God. Amen???
One question can lead to deep reflection, which is exactly where God is leading me today. I ask again, “do you trust God’s plan”? knowing I need to seek an answer that is not of my own creation.
When I began my search of “trusting God” in Scripture, I was greeted with the familiar words of Proverbs 3:5-6:
Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.
But over and over in my search, the words described those who did not trust in God. By the time, I got to Romans 9 I found the Jews holding onto the law forsaking the faith God was calling them to have. He blocked their path with a rock causing them to stumble. Life is so much easier if we move with faith along the way God prepares for us.
[Tweet “Purpose is moving out of the way to make room for God’s glorious plan.”]
As hard as I make it for myself, I see glimmers of the ease of the days when I move out of the way and let God take over. Purpose is moving out of the way to make room for God’s glorious plan.
My purpose is not wrapped up in what I create even though I believe I hold the corner market in that area. I wonder how my life would change if I trust God’s plan instead of trying to create my own?
Imagine with me what this might look like:
Challenging and scary
Uncertain as to what is next
Planning ahead will be difficult (this goes against my planner nature)
But there is more to God’s purpose than how it will challenge us. What if relying on God provides:
Brave faith
Hope
New life in Him
A purpose that aligns with our passion
A life of challenges, but one that is better than we ever imagined
Purpose is tied up in being the beautiful “you” God created. It is trusting Him with your plans knowing they will always be better than your own. When you lose the fanfare of tooting your own horn and instead trumpet the love of God, you shine your purpose brightly for God.
Now when I ask myself “do you trust God’s plan”? I see more clearly the blessings I receive when I move out of the way. Even though I am directionally challenged, God always knows the way. When I doubt, God’s Word reminds me that when I seek Him, He will show me the path to take.
May this week be wrapped up in many moments of trusting God and believing your purpose is guarded and designed by the One who knows you best.
Blessings,
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I trust God’s plan, but sometimes I fear it. I thought I knew what His plan was for my life but then bam, it all changed. I am learning how much I am uncomfortable with change. I love this post Mary. Your words always touch me deeply.
I think we live through many changes in our lifetime and we might not understand they why behind them. The blessing is that God is still with us and still rooting for us as endure the changes. I pray you keep moving forward knowing God has so much more for you.
Letting go of control and trusting in God’s plan completely brings a peace within, however I can still fight for what I think is best! Even recently I found myself feeling disappointed in an outcome (or lack of outcome) that I was really hoping for, and wondering how I could do differently so I can get what I want. Your words that purpose is tied to ‘being the beautiful ‘you’ God created me to be reminds me to seek my identity in Him instead of trying to change to try to get what I want! Why would I want to mess with His design? Thanks for the extra encouragement today, Mary!
I am working on finding my identity solely in Christ this year and embracing it. With that said, it takes daily letting go to move closer to this goal. God does have the best plan but that doesn’t stop us from wanting certain things to go our way. I pray you know how much God loves you and has in store for you even on the days it doesn’t look like you imagined.
AHH Mary, you touched on a soft spot for me today. In a good way LOL. I love this!! I am directionally challenged too.
I pray the soft spot found some peace in these words today. May God bless you as you trust Him in all.
I love how multi-faceted our God is. Yes, He gives us a purpose, but it’s not just for what we can do or how we can be challenged. It’s also because He wants to conform us to the image of His Son. His plans are always so much more than we can know when we say yes to Him. 🙂
And this: “When you lose the fanfare of tooting your own horn and instead trumpet the love of God, you shine your purpose brightly for God.” Amen, friend.
A pastor at my church says often, “God will give us more than we could ask for or imagine”. I forget to keep looking to Him and asking knowing that He is waiting for me to follow His lead.
May we believe in how brightly our lights can shine for Jesus if we just say, okay Lord, send me!
Dear Mary,
Oh this post is so fitting with my recent reading in your book! I finished Day 20, “Let God Transform our NO into His YES,” and the question posed there was: “Recall a time when letting go of your answer or point of view left you kicking and screaming?” And, it was the very day that I was asked to continue with a medication that I would rather NOT be on. I wish I could say that I instantly gave in and said, “I trust your purposes here Lord.” No, in fact I had to say, “Lord, I believe, but help my unbelief.” I think He is so merciful with our times of unbelief and difficulties in trusting, and is right there to help us as soon as we offer it all up to Him. Thank you for this beautiful confirmation of what I’ve been reading and hearing from Him! Blessings to you!
I’m so blessed to hear how God is working in you through the words in my book as well as other life experiences. Whenever I think of kicking and screaming I think of a young child having a tantrum. But I know I have been known to have a tantrum as an adult. It just looks different. I know my question, “do you trust God’s plan”? is loaded. It is challenging on many levels but God is so patient with us as we learn to rely on Him more and more. Thank you for encouraging me through this process of sharing words and asking hard questions.
Sometimes it’s so hard to trust God’s plans for us. It’s when I just want road signs…go here, stop here, yield here etc.
I love the image of a road sign. It sure would be easier to have our way mapped out, wouldn’t it? Hope you have a great weekend!
It’s hard to let go of our plans and move out of the way for God’s plan, isn’t it? Thank you for being so honest, Mary. I, too, find it harder when painful troubles or challenges come. Like Peter on the water, I often sink in the stormy waves because I look at the storm instead of keeping my eyes fixed on Jesus. I need His grace each day to look to Him and trust His plan is best. Thank you for these insights into our purpose! Love and hugs to you!
It sure is! Peter is such a good example. Knowing that all Peter needed to do was keep his eyes on Jesus seems so easy. But the second we allow fear to enter, we waver and take our eyes off of the Hope that is Jesus. I pray you continue to look to God and receive all the grace He has for you.
Is it fair to answer that I’m trying to trust God even when I can’t fully trust his plan? His plans can seem scary at times. 🙂 Thanks for these thoughts and encouragement, Mary.
I am with you! It is fair to say that. I want details as a planner so the unknown is not usually my friend. I pray we both continue to find God in the plans that are not clear and scary.
They say that God has a plan for each one of us. But if that were so, then we would be no more than robots following His plan in a pre-programmed fashion. My guess is that God has a wish for us. His wish is that we love Him so much that one day we return to be with Him for eternity. But He also loves us too, so much so that He has given us complete freedom to live our lives as we choose. To do what we want as we wish. Even to the point of choosing not to believe in Him. Now that is perhaps His plan for us … to leave us free to choose Him … or not.
God bless.
Thank you for providing a different perspective and giving me food for thought. I value your comments here.
When I look at purpose, I stand on the truth that God saw our unformed bodies and all our days were ordained and written in His book. God knew our purpose even before we were born. But along with that we are given free will and we choose whether to follow the path God laid out for us or to go our own way. We are unique individuals created by a loving God. Praying on this Valentine’s Day we know we are loved by a God who created us into being.
I think that trust in God is rarely a once in a lifetime thing and more of a daily choice and an evolving process as we grow in our faith. Maybe it always will be challenging to fully trust God while we’re tied to earth? Maybe we won’t completely lose our desire for self-governance? I can see this topic throwing up more questions than answers! And we will probably give a different one depending on what we are going through at the time. But I do believe in us all having a beautiful God-given purpose, hard as it can be to discern it sometimes. Great food for thought here, Mary! xo
Different seasons of life bring different perspectives so I agree that trust will look different depending on our circumstances. I also believe that asking one big question “do you trust God’s plan”? can easily birth many more questions. I don’t know about you, but I learn through questioning. It can be frustrating if I don’t always know the answers, but that is how we grow. Thank you for asking more questions because it has given me more to think about. God’s purpose is his gift to us and as we grow in relationship with Him, we develop the trust/faith to know God’s plan is always good. Thank you for blessing us with your insight today!
Mary,
I’m kind of like you….trusting God’s plan fully may depend on the day, my mood, how things are going. It’s sad that I can be so fickle. But then I look back on the times that I wondered what on earth is God doing. Like when he sidelined me for months (I didn’t like that plan), but my climbing the walls was the catalyst to birth my blog. Then another surgery and more climbing walls and it morphed into the Foundation I started. My problem is that I always want to understand and what I am growing to accept is that I am just simply not going to understand God’s ways sometimes, but I can trust Him anyway. I guess that’s why they call it faith?!
Blessings,
Bev xx
Being a planner makes trusting difficult at times. I also want to understand and also would love all the details laid out for me in the process. What I am hearing from you is that God slowed you down for whatever the reason and as a result He showed you how faithful he is. When I look at your story I am reminded that not knowing can result in more than we could ever ask or imagine. Not such a bad thing, right?
Praying we both slow down long enough to hear, listen and seek Him in all we do. Love and hugs!
I think we’re all directionally challenged when it comes to God. (kiddingnotkidding) Mary, I love that you are pursuing these questions and drawing us into the conversation. The quick answer is, “Yes, I trust God’s plan for my life.” But then, Jesus asks, “Do you love Me? Do YOU love Me? Do you LOVE Me?” and perhaps we are not so quick to answer. Because really, the question goes to the heart of our relationship with God. Our trust in HIM. In Who He is and what He says. “Did God really say?” For too many of us, this question is answered during the fall. When we MUST trust Him to catch us. Recognizing and wanting to seek the answer now, before the fall is a beautiful act of faith. Thank you for encouraging us to go there. Have a blessed week, my friend!
Relationship! You summed it up perfectly! Our trust in God is connected to our relationship with Him. The deeper we know God the more we trust Him. I am learning that over and over. I am also learning that people will say they trust God when their life situation is going through a difficult season. It’s as if we need challenges in order to trust Him.
I will never be able to answer this question without some doubt along the way, but I pray I can reach closer to relying on God first in this last part of my life. Love your wisdom June!
“Even though I am directionally challenged, God always knows the way.”
This is the best sentence. When driving, I operate solely by landmarks. North is whatever direction I am facing at the moment. It’s all too easy for me to get lost. This applies to my spiritual life, too; I rehash old things and spin in circles. Thankful am I that God doesn’t give up on me!
I am the one who listens to SIRI give me directions and I don’t believe her so I still go my own way. You would think I would learn. I also do that in my faith life. I am glad to hear that you understand and follow some similar patterns. I am praying that this idea of trust becomes not just an idea but an integral part of who we are. Good to see you today, Marie!
The “church lady” that’s embedded in the coil of my DNA hurries right into a “yes” answer to this question, but I have to look at my fear quotient and the level of peace in my daily walk to really get to the answer. This is such a transitional time for me, that the word “purpose” looks a little different every day. I’m thankful for the excitement and anticipation of these days, but also very aware that I did not appreciate the consistency of the past couple of decades nearly as much as I should have!
I imagine many people answered the question without hesitation and said “yes”. I appreciate your honesty and am watching as you maneuver the many changes that will result in a big transition when your last son leaves home. I know from my experience how purpose changes in different seasons and we need to find contentment in all seasons. I am praying for you during this transition and know that God will meet you right where you are.
I love this, Mary! After intending to spend as long as necessary in prayer yesterday morning, I found that I spent forty minutes making plans with God – telling him all I wanted to accomplish in the upcoming season. Again and again, this is my struggle. I create plans and find myself frustrated when God sends detours. He gently reminded me that above all the plans, he longs for me to know him more. I’m slowly learning to lay down my plans and seek a relationship with him first. I know his plans will unfold in my life as I seek his face!
Your insight is truth for my soul. I forget at times that God always knows best and His plans are better than I could ask for or imagine. It is an issue for me of staying the course and surrendering whatever I God asks of me to fulfill His plan. I will be praying for you as you maneuver this season. God is faithful and so very good!
That, my dear, is a loaded question! I went through the horrible nightmare cancer journey & still having issues because of it.. I dealt with everything depending on God; BUT, my husband started listening to the teachings of a cult & has accepted what they say as the truth. We will soon be married 54 years and I guarantee I don’t understand why this has happened. He used to teach Sunday School, sang in the choir and was a deacon in the Baptist church & now he says that was all lies because this “religion” teaches all mainline religions are nothing but lies. Believe me, I still depend on God daily!
It certainly is a loaded question. You have a story of challenges and I love how God is keeping you close as you depend on Him. I am praying for you and your husband. May God soften your husband’s heart and continue to surround you with strength and peace. Thank you for being here. Blessings!
I definitely don’t always find it easy to trust God’s plan, especially when I can’t understand what he’s doing. But I do know deep down that his plan is better than mine. I like looking at stories from the Bible like Joseph’s story where we can see God’s plan working out as we look back now at the big picture, even though a lot of the time Joseph probably didn’t feel like God had a good plan while it was all happening.
I understand how you feel because I also find it hard to trust when I can’t see the end goal. Joseph’s story is a good one to dive into to see how God works and to understand his faithfulness. We know as believers that we will go through trials and when we read about Joseph we see this happening. But the hope is in how everything seemed to come full circle in his story. Thank you for sharing your insight
I guess or me it depends…if I thought that an extremely painful and terminal illness with all of its small and large humiliations was part of God’s plan, I’d figure He lost His mind. This is just a beasting; today was dreadful, tomorrow will be worse.
But I don’t think that was His plan. Cancer comes from a fallen world, and He is offering me the chance to redeem a small part of it by helping my willingness to witness.
There’s more to say, but I’m too ill now to say it.
God is absolutely loving that you are witnessing to others through your dreaded disease. Even though His plan and purpose are probably nothing like you imagined, you have embraced it with grace. I am praying for you for strength to endure the pain. Blessings!