Is God's Plan for Me "Plan B"?
"Many are the plans of a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails (Proverbs 19:21 NIV)."I've had that verse up on my whiteboard in my office for a week. I often read proverbs throughout the day at work. It's sort of a business handbook for success. It's amazing how often you have to deal with the topics of diligence, righteousness, greed and deception when you are running a business. Proverbs helps me to continually remind myself of the rewards of doing the right thing. In any case, when I stumbled onto this verse last week I was feeling overwhelmed. I was struck by how this verse comforted me. The truth is, that it takes an adjustment in our point of view to be comforted by God's sovereignty over our plans.
God's Plan B
You see, what bothers me most about the idea of His sovereignty is "Plan B". You know what a "Plan B" is don't you? That's when the ceiling fan you just repaired flies off its spindle and goes careening through the living room window. Your wife looks at you and says, "Ok... what's plan B?". Plan B means "How do we fix this... how do we repair the damage?" Plan B means settling for something less than perfect. Sometimes I think that's my life in a nutshell. Of course God is at work in my life, but most of the time it seems like He's patching holes that I've made in his plan for me. I'm sure what God's "perfect" will is for me - but I've been on "Plan B" almost from the moment I fully commited my life to him. I have not "gotten it right" yet. I'm still off of the path that I'm sure God intended for me. How can God's will be fulfilled in my life if I'm on Plan B. Is there a point where I completely miss what He has for me and never have the opportunity to get it back?
Ah... but there it is. Can you see it? Can you see that small inner child looking up at you reproachfully with his "that's-not-fair" stare? Why do we constantly take out the weights and measures when we examine our walk with God. This journey that we are on is about going deeper with Him. Whatever gets us to that goal is His will. No one who has been tainted by sin can claim to be following God's perfect plan with regard to his or her life's direction. We live in a plan B world. The only way to make it right is through the Lordship of Christ and the covering of His blood. That sacrifice is what wipes the slate clean. That is why this verse comforts me. It's about resting in him. It's about the assurance that He will prevail in my life.
You see I still have many plans in my heart. Some of them are birthed from my walk with God. Other plans are fanciful and still others spring from my own ambition. My heart is deceitful and prone to wander. I pray about what God wants for me and try to discover His purpose, but my heart is so full. It is bursting with desires, teaming with plans, rife with hopeful ambition. I pray for wisdom, but I am still out there - making decisions, living life. When God chooses to remain silent on one of my plans, how do I know the way?
When I'm troubled by this, I remember how small my understanding is compared with His. It is worth it to trust God. Every time I give up something I thought was precious I find that it was a trinket compared to what He has for me. I do not trust Him perfectly yet - but I am able to rest in Him. I know that His Plan B is already light years ahead of my plan A. He can refocus my walk and bring it into balance. He can deliver me from my own designs and make "His purpose prevail". His plans for me can capture the desires of my heart and as I walk with Him and become more like Him, mydesires and His desires can merge within the tapestry of my life. I know that in spite of the many failures I have had, God has a purpose and a plan for me. His "perfect" will for this moment and this hour is that I walk with him and trust him. My prayer is, "Jesus, give me the strength to trust you and to yield to you. Allow me to rest in you. Let me feel your gentle tug as I walk through the many decisions of my life both great and small. Let my heart be consumed by what you have for me."
Choir Director, singer, piano player, technologist and erstwhile blogger.