Plans May Change but God's Plans Remain

On Sunday as the sun came up the day was absolutely beautiful. Blue skies dotted with fluffy white clouds hung in the sky and streaks of gold shined on the dewy grass. The flowers popped in the light and everything looked clean and beautiful. The plan was to be outside all day to enjoy God’s world. 

The only problem with that plan was that within the hour blue black clouds stepped forward out of the west and covered all the crispness. Gloom took over. Rain drops fell. It stayed cold and drippy all day. I never got to spend time outdoors. My plans changed.

We decided that it was a great day to go to church anyway. Then come home and eat a bite of lunch, watch an old movie on tv and have a nap. We had some little visitors and two of them took naps as well. It was that kind of day. I guess I could have griped and moaned and cursed the weather. I could have lamented that I wasn’t getting to do what I wanted to do. I could have ceased to enjoy the day entirely, but I chose to enjoy what there was, along with the change of plans.

The next day came a bigger challenge. A huge change in some plans we had been making for months. I didn’t handle it so well. I was fretting and fussing most of the day. I felt so unsettled. I knew we had a choice – we could either keep with our original plan or we could change our plans. My day didn’t go so well because I had forgotten to make friends with change. I had also forgotten that God’s plans remain no matter what my plans are. 

When I got home and talked with Danny we both agreed that God was up to something, even though it was very different from what we had planned. Then I remembered the Bible study we’re in and how we had studied just last week about discernment. So together we asked God for discernment about the decisions we had to make. Within 30 minutes complete peace came and the decision was made. I had fretted the entire day trying to make heads or tails of what was going on. I had been in a battle and didn’t even realize it. The battle was between my plans and God’s plans. Ultimately that’s where the battle lies. Sure God blesses us with friendships, fellowship, trips and plans. He doesn’t keep us from enjoying life. We just need, for our own sakes and for the sake of the Kingdom, to let God in on our plans so we can enjoy His best.

Oh beloved, God wants you to know that He has wonderful plans for your life! First and foremost His plan is for you to find restoration to the Kingdom of God through Christ. Then He wants you to include Him in every single day – in every single plan – ask Him about His desires and tell Him about yours. No greater fulfillment than to be right in the center of God’s will. Your plans may have gone awry but God loves you. Because He loves you, you can trust that His plans will not be thwarted by any man’s decisions. You are not the victim of circumstances and you don’t have to fret or worry or get frustrated about life’s changes. Today is your day to step up to the Light and feel the Son’s blessings as you walk in the light of God’s Word and His will. No mere vacation will suffice; no personal plans will be good enough. It’s ultimately God’s plans that will stand the test of time. Pray for discernment and He will give it to you. Apologize if you’ve fretted and caused someone else trouble. Rejoice that when it’s all said and done, doing things according to God’s plan is the best plan you’ll ever make.

God loves you and He’s for you. Now go out and have a wonderful day as you make plans and let Him plan your day for His kingdom and His glory as well as your good!

Proverbs 3:5-6 Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths. (Amplified)

Proverbs 16:3 Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.

Romans 12:2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

Psalm 37:23 The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives

Instructions for the Truth - Do Not Dilute

Most everything we use for cleaning supplies is now only available in concentrated versions.  Sometimes it seems so thick that I get to thinking it must be too strong. The consistency just seems that it will be too harsh or that it needs a little thinning. Concentrated detergent requires me to use just a little bit, when back in the day we’d use a full cup of it to clean a tub full of laundry. 

Other times when I’m almost out of shampoo, I may add a little water to get the most use out of the bottle.  It still lathers up, maybe even better, but it’s diluted.  

While I am tempted to dilute the consistency of these products, I have to ask myself if it cleans as well.  It may go further, it may cost less, but when it comes down to it, I am shortchanging myself because it just doesn’t clean as well. It won’t do its job the way it’s supposed to if I dilute it.  No money saved at all if I have to wash twice to get the desired effect.

The consistency of the Word of God is important as well.  Dilute it down and you will lose the true meaning and intent.  If you add anything to the Word, which is the Truth, you will get poor results. Add man’s thinking and you get half truths. They sound good, they look great, but they don’t achieve the right results. It is the undiluted Word of God that makes for salvation, righteousness, sanctification and glorification, without these ingredients you cannot see God.

Have you been tempted to dilute God’s Word in order to make friends, influence people or keep the peace?  You’ve heard people say that the Bible is too strict, narrow-minded and old fashioned.  So you’ve tried thinning it down, making it more palatable to see if more people might be interested. It could be that your grown children, who were raised in the nurture and admonition of the Lord are now saying you’re too strict, too biased, only for old people.  It may be that even those who say they belong to God are wanting to have the Word delivered to them their way  - a way that won’t require them to quit compromising and living like the world.

Oh beloved, you are blessed beyond measure! Not only has God given you salvation, He has given you His Word so that you will be able to live in its light. You don’t have to wander around in the dark, wondering what to do, where to go or how to live.  Every Word of God is your way to profit, your path to success and your reason for living. Every precept is the way for you to find strength for today and hope for tomorrow. Run to His Word this morning and thank Him for the sincere milk of the Word.  His blessings are on you as you take His Word in and live it out.  Take it in beloved, live it out and thank the Lord for His magnificent gift. He loves you and He’s for you so He’s given you His wonderful Word. Believe it and watch as His will unfolds for you!

 

Hebrews 4:12  For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires.

Psalm 119:37  Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through Your word.

2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.

Psalm 19:8 The commandments of the LORD are right, bringing joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are clear, giving insight for living.

Psalm 119:89 Your eternal word, O LORD, stands firm in heaven.

Looking For Change?

Brother, Can you Spare a Dime was an old song sung during the Depression era when people valued and prayed for every nickel and dime they had. Even though there’s a big push towards a cashless society, we still like our folding money and jingling coins.  Danny and I have a huge water jug that we collect change in. When it gets full, that money will be turned in for Run for the Son missions’ effort.  We enjoy seeing the nickels dimes and quarters along with pennies inching their way to the top. Danny enjoys giving good tips and telling the waitress to keep the change when we dine out. The grandkids all love getting quarters from us when we’re at the discount store so they can get bubble gum or try to retrieve a toy via one of the games.  I can still hear my daddy rattling the change in his pocket.  Danny also likes to pick up pennies on the sidewalk and in parking lots. It’s money and five pennies equals a nickel he says. It’s really hard to believe people will throw away pennies, discard them as though they are worthless. The most recent time change is hard to deal with in the morning, but it sure is nice in the evening. 

Change is inevitable. Change is good. Change is everywhere. Give someone cash and you’ll generally always get change back.   Color your hair and a big change happens. Drive a little slower and your gas mileage will change for sure. Take vitamins and your fingernails change – they get stronger and grow faster.  Have a cold? Take your medicine and the symptoms subside and you get well faster. Paint a room and the change is dramatic!

Maybe you’d like to have more change. You wish that you could repair your mistakes, forget your regrets or balance your life account to quit being in the red. You’re thinking you overspent your chances at mercy and grace and there’s no way to get anything back that’s worth having. Hold on! God’s mercies are new every morning and His grace extends to thousands of generations. 

You may be reading this and thinking, “I don’t WANT change!” You’re tired of people being fickle and life handing you lemons. You wonder why things can’t just stay the same. You don’t want to have any changes, you like things just the way they are. You live for the old days when things were simpler and life was easier. You fear tomorrow because you don’t know what’s there. Hold on, there’s no need to fear for God is in your tomorrows!

Oh beloved, it’s time to make friends with change! Change will help you grow in faith. Don’t fear the outcome for God is making a way for you where you can’t see the way. Life may appear to be a foggy road ahead, but God will clear out the things that are holding you back. His Truth is your vehicle to forge into the future with gusto! Whether you want change or fear it, God Has wonderful plans for your future. While some changes are not good in themselves, God can be trusted to keep you safe and He will cause you to grow in Grace! God uses each change to increase your Knowledge of Him! Believe His way is the best road and love your life in Christ!

The greatest change you will ever experience is the change God makes when you yield yourself totally to Him.  If He can change a heart to belong to Him, then He can surely take your yesterdays, todays and tomorrows and change them into a life that displays His glorious mercy and grace! God loves you always and forever beloved and He’s for you eternally and that’s something you can never change!

Ezekiel 36:26-27 And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.  And I will put My Spirit in you so that you will follow My decrees and be careful to obey My regulations.  And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow My decrees and be careful to obey My regulations.

Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

2 Corinthians 3:18 So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like Him as we are changed into His glorious image.

Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right, persevering, and steadfast spirit within me. (Amplified Bible)

Need Insight for Living? You Can Have It!

You know they make some great commercials. I especially love the insurance commercial where the girl is talking to a guy about what she read about his insurance company on the internet. She tells him “they can’t put anything on the internet that isn’t true”.   At the end of the commercial she walks off with a guy she had “met” on the internet who was a French model, only he definitely was anything but that.  Still she believed it and walked away arm in arm with him.

There are so many things taken as true today.  There are multitudes of infomercials extoling the virtues of one thing or another, all the time promising that their truth is the best.  If you buy it, you’ll be perfect, your life will be perfect, your future will be perfect. Just buy their product, the book, the dvd…whatever they’re selling.   There is much on Christianity as well. I find that I get lost in the information about all of it, unless I spend time in the Word. The more I fill my heart and mind with God’s Word the more easily I discern the false from the true.

Oh beloved, are you drowning in a sea of information? Have you searched everywhere for something to hang onto, something to make sense out of your situation? Maybe you want to do your own thing so you’ve sought out writers who believe you can do just that. Are you tired of running here and there and everywhere to find something that really touches your heart and changes your life? Run to God’s Word this morning and read! All the promises mentioned within the pages of the Holy Word are true. They will feed you, they will increase your beauty, they will add wisdom to your life and they’ll stay with you when everything else, everyone else, is gone.   

What wondrous love is this that the King of the Universe, the Self Existent One would write a Book just for you to live by? No ordinary book; written by no ordinary author; published by no ordinary producer.  Thank the One Whose name is Faithful and True! He loves you and He’s for you and that’s all that really matters!

Psalm 19:8-10 The commandments of the Lord are right, bringing joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are clear, giving insight for living. Reverence for the Lord is pure, lasting forever. The laws of the Lord are true; each one is fair.  They are more desirable than gold, even the finest gold. They are sweeter than honey, even honey dripping from the comb.

Hosea 14:9 Let those who are wise understand these things. Let those with discernment listen carefully. The paths of the LORD are true and right, and righteous people live by walking in them...

2 Timothy 3:16  All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.

Psalm 86:11  Teach me your ways, O LORD, that I may live according to Your truth! Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor You.

Changes Ahead? You Can Trust God!

We moved a lot when I was a kid.  It was hard to put down roots when moves happened so often.  Kindergarten was in one school, then I started 1^st grade in another school, 2^nd – 3^rd in another, but finished 3^rd in yet another school in another state.  Then we moved twice in the same town which changed schools for me.  Finally we ended up back where I’d started 1^st grade and I spent 4 years to finish  school with the same friends. It was heavenly!

It seems that God was working behind the scenes even then.  While I was yearning to stay put and belong somewhere, He was teaching me to make friends with change.  It was many years before I came to that realization. Sometimes change comes with tears, other times it comes with joy, but one thing I know, it will be alright because God is with us!

Oh beloved, things may seem real rocky right now. Your life may be in upheaval and your comfort zone may be dwindling away.  You may even think you are facing a downfall! Trust God! He never ever takes you to where you cannot endure. His ways are always for your best, even when you can’t see it.  For His loved ones, and you are surely that, He knows what’s ahead and even in the hardship He may be protecting you from further trouble.  Move on with God and let Him be the one who decides your road. He loves you and He’s for you and that’s all that matters!

 

Psalm 118:8 “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.”

Psalm 121:3 “He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber.”

Proverbs 2:6-9  “For the Lord grants wisdom! From His mouth come knowledge and understanding. He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest. He is a shield to those who walk with integrity. He guards the paths of the just and protects those who are faithful to Him. Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair, and you will find the right way to go.”