Our Plans vs. His Plans (Part 2)

Sorry I've been gone for an eternity!! Shortly after my last post, I had surgery and then things with my family just got super crazy, but I'm back now for part two about plans!

I saw this two weeks ago, and just had to snap a shot!
When we trust God and His plans, we may be in less-than-ideal places. . .
But just like this flower, we can flourish because He has us
and is working everything for His glory and our good!

Alrighty!! If you haven't read my previous post about plans (right here!), I encourage you go do that right now and then come back here! There's so much to say about plans (especially God's plans!) and we've barely scratched the surface already! Here, we will continue to discuss plans (still only scratching the surface) by looking at some examples from the Bible. Throughout all ages, God's people have had some crazy times, but He always came through for them. His perfect plan allowed them to face trials but come out preserved and in many cases with much stronger faith. So without further ado, let's dive in!!

One of the first Bible stories I learned was about Joseph. It's a pretty well-known story, right? Found in the middle to end area of Genesis (ch. 37-50), the story of Joseph is pretty nuts. Sold into slavery by his own brothers, led into a foreign land, imprisoned, rising to power in a time of need-- yeah, pretty insane. A lot of times, I tend to skim over this story because it's so well known, and maybe you have that problem too, but let's just think slowly for a moment. Sold into slavery by his brothers-- think of your own siblings (people you love) doing something like that to you. Completely rejecting you... casting you out to total strangers. Then imagine being in a place without letters or cellphones or email for communication. No way to contact home, and no way to get away from where you were. Then, imagine doing the right thing in some situation and becoming even more cut off than you were before. Let those thoughts sink in. How would you feel? What would you want to do?

Growing up, I always felt really bad for Joseph. Even though the story lost some of its severity sometimes in my mind, I still held the sense that what happened to Joseph was really bad and cruel on his brothers' part. But if you read the story to the end, you see that Joseph doesn't feel bad for himself. I'm sure he had his moments of "why me?!" or "God, what are you doing?!" but in the end, he was able to confidently say, "You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good" (Genesis 50:20). Because something terrible happened to Joseph, he was able to grow. His faith was put to the test, and ultimately he was a big piece in preserving his family and many others. 

Joseph is a great lesson of God's plans in life. Even the bad things don't catch Him off guard, and He uses those tough circumstances for His glory and our good. That can be hard to swallow sometimes. For instance, how can Christians killed in Muslim countries be for God's glory and our good? Questions like that can make us rethink things we believe. But standing for Christ-- living in the way He did-- brings glory to the Father because it is Christ working in us. Furthermore, Christians believe that "to live is Christ and to die is gain." See, even in those extreme circumstances, God is at work. His plans are  best for us, even if bad things (no matter the magnitude) happen to us like they happened to Joseph.

Another great example of God's plans in the Bible is found in the book Habakkuk. Recently in the church we go to for evening services, our pastor was walking through this 3 chapter book, and it was super interesting. (I will link a website where you can find these sermons down below.) Anyway, Habakkuk was having a rough time. God was promising to send the Chaldeans (close to our modern day terrorist groups) to judge His people. Habakkuk couldn't understand. He couldn't understand what God was doing and how that could be good for the Israelites. Eventually, the confused prophet shuts his mouth and allows God to speak. Afterwards, Habakkuk sings. He still doesn't fully understand God's plan and how it's good for the people, but he understands more of Who God is. Even in his song, he walks back through God's wondrous deeds and finds comfort in them. He rests in God's judgement, knowing that God is good and will judge perfectly. However, he also rejoiced and has great joy, resting in the fact that God will bring about a salvation as He always has (Habakkuk 3:18-19).  

One of the biggest lessons I learned from Habakkuk is that it's okay to not understand God's plans. Sounds normal, right? In my life, though, I often try so hard to understand why God does what He does in my life and how that contributes to His perfect plan, and that often leads to doubts. Sometimes, though, it's better to be like Habakkuk and close our mouths. Listen to what God has to say. Go back through the Bible and read about His promises. Even if we don't understand, we can be sure that everything will turn out okay if we are His. Thus, even when plans don't go our ways, we need to rest in Him-- easier said than done, I know, but it IS possible. And sometimes, like Habakkuk, we just need to bring all of our questions to Him. Take our doubts and fears to Him and be comforted by His promises.

For a final example, I want to consider two people from the New Testament: Joseph and Mary. They were people just like you and me. They didn't stand out in the eyes of the world and didn't seem to be special. However, God's plans for their lives were greater than anything they could have imagined. Through Mary, the Savior of the world was incarnated. It was totally unexpected for these two, and yet it was a marvelous event! 

Now, you and I will never have something like that happen to us. Jesus isn't going to come again like a baby that a woman can carry and a man can father. But we especially learn from this story! You never know how God is going to work in your life. No matter who you are, great things can (and will!) happen in your life. . . things that we could never dream of! His plans go above and beyond our wildest dreams and have proven (over and over again) to be the best plans in the entire universe! So no matter what you're going through in life, trust Him and His plans. Maybe you need to be like Habakkuk and let all your doubts and arguments out. But after that, stop talking and watch Him work. Remind yourself of His nature and promises. Trust His perfect plans for your life, and soon you'll be able to see the small notes of life become a beautiful song for our King.

For the sermons on Habakkuk, visit this site. (Scroll down just a little to find all of them!)

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