Have you ever looked at your life and then looked at God and said, “What are you thinking? How does this fit with what You’ve put in my heart? I really don’t understand!”
Yeah. Me too. A lot. Right now, in fact.
Mikel and I are heading into a season that wasn’t even on our radar. But God….
I bumped into this verse in my yearly Bible reading today:
This is what the Lord says—
your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
who teaches you what is good for you
and leads you along the paths you should follow.(Isaiah 48:17)
But sometimes “what’s good for us” and “the paths we should follow” don’t make any sense. His direction can be questionable to our natural minds. We look at our lives and think, “Well, that’s not what I thought it would look like.”
Here’s the thing we need to remember – life rarely looks like what we thought it would. His plans rarely match what we have in our minds. Rarely match our plans or our expectations.
But walking with the Lord for 25+ years now, I’ve learned a thing or two:
He knows what He’s doing
When I don’t understand the plan, I always go back to Joseph. His life didn’t turn out the way he expected either. When God gave him those dreams of his brothers bowing down to him, I don’t think he saw the pit, slavery, or prison on his path at all. Those things weren’t on his radar, but they were on God’s.
Those things weren’t a part of Joseph’s dream, but they were most definitely part of God’s plan. That was God getting him into position for his dream to come to pass.
It wasn’t comfortable on Joseph’s flesh. That’s undeniable. But it wasn’t the enemy at work either. That was all a part of God’s Plan A. That was God making sure Joseph was in the right place at the right time. Selah on that for a little bit.
His plans are always better
God told me one time, “You let Me author a lot of things in your life, but you never let Me finish them. Once it’s authored, you jump right in, try to figure it out, and take it over. If you’d let Me be the Finisher too, I will amaze you. I can do a much better job than you.”
Ouch!
If Joseph had his way, he would have been set free and gone back home to be reunited with his family. And that would have been a fine life. There would have been happy tears, and they would have lived happily every after. Well, at least until the drought hit. Then they all would have died.
In the end, God’s plan was better. Even though it included the pit and slavery and prison. Even though I’m sure Joseph looked at God more than once and said, “What are you thinking? This is not what I thought it would look like when you gave me those dreams!”
Not only was Joseph reunited with his family, but he was in the elevated position of second in command of all of Egypt with all the prosperity and abundance that came with it.
And….they didn’t die. Joseph was in the right place at the right time to rescue God’s covenant people and protect them through the drought. To protect the lineage through whom Jesus would come.
At the end of the day, it’s not about us. It’s ultimately about His plan. Our part is to by faith say, “Yes, Lord! Where You lead, I will follow. No matter what!”
We need to remember that even though we may not understand what He’s up to when we’re walking through it, He knows what He’s doing, and His plans are always better.
One day it will be hindsight to us, and we’ll be able to look back and say, “Wow, God! Your plan was so much better than what I was thinking. Thank You! You are so faithful!”
Until then, don’t lose hope. Hold on to trust. He is faithful, and it’s going to be amazing!
Now to Him Who, by (in consequence of) the [action of His] power that is at work within us, is able to [carry out His purpose and] do superabundantly, far over and above all that we [dare] ask or think [infinitely beyond our highest prayers, desires, thoughts, hopes, or dreams]— (Ephesians 3:20)