God Has a Plan

When I was growing up I used to sing a song in church that has been in my head all day.  The words that are really sticking with me are:

"My life is a gift, my life has a plan, my life has a purpose in Heaven it began."

My life has a plan.  How often do we forget that in Heaven a plan was set out for us.  God knows where were going and how we are going to get there.  Sometimes we don't like his plan.  I have often found myself wondering why he won't just listen to me and my plan.  Because in my infinite wisdom I must know better then God does.

I recently have been going through things in life that have made me wonder what God's plan is for Jeremy and I and why it can't be more like my plan for us. It seems so simple to me.  There are things that I want for us and I think that God should give them to me just because I want them.

But now I have stepped out of my selfishness for just a minute and analyzed my thoughts. I have seen many children, and even some adults who's parents gave them everything.  They didn't work for what they had, they were never told no as children and usually they aren't my favorite people.  They don't understand the value of the things they have.  They don't know the sadness of not getting what you want.  They don't know the joy of getting something even better after you've struggled for it. They do not know the joy of patiently waiting in order to get a wonderful gift because it has always been given to them as soon as they ask.

Wait.  Did I really just say that waiting patiently is joyful?  I hope I am not alone in saying that it often is not joyful for me.  Waiting is hard and I rarely do it patiently.  But so many in the Bible have had to wait and when they did so great things came to them.  Hebrews 6:13-15 says so beautifully that God will deliver upon his promises to us.  He will carry out great things in our lives if we wait patiently.

Here is the hard part for me to deal with.  Just because we wait patiently doesn't mean we will get the things we want.  But we will get the things God has in store for us.  Which, even though we may not know the reason for these things they are exactly what we need in our lives.

I have prayed to God for things that I feel are realistic blessings to ask for.  Have I received these things?  Some of them yes, many of them no.  Do I still pray for them?  Yes I do.  Has not having those prayers answered in the way I want them to be been hard on me?  Very.  I hate to admit this but it has gone as far as to shake my faith.  But by having my faith shaken, broken down in a way, God is now able to build me up to be what he wants me to be.  He is able to use me in the way that He has always planned.

Ephesians 2:10 states "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them."

That is so powerful to me.  God's plan for me is ordained in Heaven.  How awesome is that.  I am created for good works, to be used by God.

I still don't know what God's plan for us is.  I probably never will in this life.  But I know that part of the plan is for us to grow in our faith of him, to do all we can to be Christ like examples, to be the best Christians we can be.  I know that I have been given so much love to share with others.  I don't know all of the ways that I am to share this love nor do I know how this love is affecting or will affect the lives of others.  But I know that God has a plan and He is using me to build his kingdom.  And I am proud to be a daughter of the King!