Sometimes things don’t go exactly as we’ve planned. We get busy with this or that, trip over the dog and break a bone, have a little less in the bank than we’d thought, or just have a fussy toddler that doesn’t want to cooperate with us leaving for church in the morning. And those are just the little things.

Then there’s the big stuff. A life-threatening medical diagnosis or death in the family, the loss of a job or home, hurricane, earthquake, and war. The one thing we can count on is that there is nothing we can actually count on. Well… nothing that is, except God.

We can stand on the promise that God knows the plan, even though our human flesh really REALLY wants to participate in the process and, if we’re completely honest, the decision making. It’s a lot easier to talk about leaping off the cliff, hanging onto faith as our anchor, than it is to make our feet move in whatever direction God is telling us to go.

I think my biggest problem is with that word PLAN. I’m a preparer by nature, and I want to have everything mapped out in a sequence that makes perfect sense to me. When things get a bit out of order, I can give in to worry and confusion. But I’ve come to the conclusion that faith isn’t just about doing, sometimes it’s about not doing.

As much as it feels uncomfortable, there are going to be times when we need to stop, take a breath, and let God do all the orchestrating. Otherwise, the voice in our head (our own by the way) can become so loud we stop hearing what He wants from us. Psalm 31:15 says “my times are in Your hands…” In other words, all the happenings and circumstances of our lives are being held in the protection of our Father’s most capable care.

We tend to pull from that verse that our time, our mortality, is in God’s hands. While that’s true, we need to remember that every moment is in His control. Our times: every single circumstance, heartbeat, panicked moment, second of joy and pain. The only one who feels our ups and downs as much as we do is Abba Father.

During those hours when our hearts are overflowing with the ‘what-if’s’ in life, we must remember that we can put all our trust into God’s hands. As 1 John 3:20 tells us, “God is greater than our heart, and He knows everything.”

We can be the best planner in the world, but God is the ultimate Director. Proverbs 16:9 says “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.” In other words, we can do all the preparing we want, and I think He is even pleased with our willingness to be ready, but the actual walk is going to have to be determined by His lead if we are to stay in fellowship with Him.

But there is a real blessing in the lack of control that has most of us so anxious. Our great Father doesn’t just have a plan for us, but it is – as stated in Jeremiah 29 – one that is designed to prosper us, to give us hope, and to give us a future. And praise God, that future is not just here on earth, but beyond that, it is with Him in Eternity.

Having trouble navigating the path? “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight” [Proverbs 3:5-6]. I don’t know about you, but I’m happy I don’t always have to count on my very flawed sense of direction.

Be blessed my Friend, God is on the throne!