Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand. (Proverbs 19:21, ESV)
I enjoy playing golf. I also enjoy cruising. What better way to combine those two activities than to go on a golf cruise? In late 2019 that’s exactly what my wife and I and another couple made plans to do this fall. If all had gone according to plan, I’d be writing this devotion from somewhere off the coast of Spain or Portugal before hitting the Send button. I can only imagine what inspiration that experience might have provided for this month’s devotion. But something called COVID-19 happened and all of those plans for an exciting adventure went by the wayside. At least I didn’t get seasick!
I have a sense that as many of you approached 2020, you had big plans as well—graduations, weddings, travel, anniversary and birthday celebrations, retirement, and all kinds of other activities. I’m guessing that not many of those events occurred or, if they did, they didn’t happen the way you had envisioned. The disappointments flowing from our plans being upset like the proverbial apple cart have been huge. We feel like we’ve been cheated out of experiencing something that we put a lot of effort into planning. How can we avoid these feelings when our plans don’t succeed?
We need to remember, as today’s verse from Proverbs reminds us, that God’s plans are supreme.
I am not suggesting that we not make plans. Rather, I’m suggesting that we seek God’s counsel and guidance through prayer and studying Scripture as we approach our planning process. We should not lose sight of his teachings about his plans for us.
And just what are his plans? Jeremiah provides insight about God’s plans for us when he wrote:
God’s promise provides hope for the future and confidence that we can go about our daily lives without fear.
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. (Jeremiah 29:11)
His promise, both to the Israelites in captivity some 2,600 years ago and to us today, provides hope for the future and confidence that we can go about our daily lives without fear because his plans for us, when we follow him in faithfulness, are good.
Sara Groves, in her song “He’s Always Been Faithful,” penned a powerful lyric with her co-writers Thomas O. Chisholm and William M. Runyan:
Morning by morning I wake up to find
The power and comfort of God’s hand in mine
Season by season I watch Him, amazed
In awe of the mystery of His perfect ways
All I have need of, His hand will provide
He’s always been faithful to me.
When I couple God’s promise that he has a plan for me with the fact that he has always been faithful to me, the disappointment of not seeing the many plans I’ve made come to fruition wanes in comparison to the joy and hope I have that I’m God’s great hands.
—
Mark “Ole” Olson
October 14, 2020
Copyright 2020 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.
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