Think about a time when you were so set on a specific path, whether it was a career choice, a relationship, or any other major decision you may have been facing in your life. Once you have thought about a time, think about where you are now.
Are you in that career field? Are you still in a relationship with that person? Is your life how you planned it to be five years ago? I know mine is not even close to how I thought it would be. I am a planner. I love to go through scenarios in my head and create my whole future and write it down on paper, but I have come to realize that more times than not, my plan is not God’s plan.
Proverbs 16:1-2 says this: “Mortals make elaborate plans, but God has the last word. Humans are satisfied with whatever looks good; God probes for what is good” (The Message).
Proverbs 16 tells us outright that the plans we make are not based on what is truly the best, but just what seems like it could be the best. God is watching over us and is guiding us down the path that is the best for us. There are always reasons for things that we may not understand. Whether it is about a relationship suddenly ending or if it is about being let go from a job that you thought would be permanent. God always has something better for us even when we can’t see it.
I can think of countless examples of things ending in my life that I thought would be my forever. Growing up, I was never shy about changing my career path. I wanted to be an actress, a chef, an event planner and a police officer. The list could go on forever. I would try these things out and God would tell me no. I never understood why He was telling me no until I found the career path that I truly wanted to pursue. God provided me with opportunities that showed me how much I loved ministering to others through sport. While I am still in search of what God wants me to do with this passion, I have come to realize that God always has a better plan than I do. As 1 Corinthians 2:9 says, “However, as it is written: ‘What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived’ — the things God has prepared for those who love him.”
God’s plan for your life is good. He does not want to harm you or hurt you. He wants the absolute best for your life, and His plan is what the best is.
I play soccer, and I am very competitive, so injuries were always very difficult for me to handle. I would always put on a face and act like I was fine even though on the inside, I was normally questioning God and why He hindered me in this way. Over the summer of 2016, I was doing a sports ministry program and, two weeks in, I got hurt and had to have surgery. The injury prevented me from playing soccer all summer, and it was really hard. While it was difficult for me to understand, it was truly a blessing. Before the summer, I had been struggling with my love for soccer. I was at a point where I was really struggling with wanting to play. The injury brought my love back. It showed me how much I truly loved playing the sport, and it woke up the passion in me. God had a plan when I was injured two weeks into the program; it just took me some time to see His plan.
God has a great plan for your life, and He always has your best interest in mind. He wants you to be prosperous and successful, and He wants you to surrender to His plan daily. He wants you to pursue Him and His plan for your life, because it is much greater than any plan our human selves could develop for our lives.
Hope Brakenhoff is a student at Greenville University.
DISCUSS IT
- Are you seeking your own plan or God’s plan? In what ways?
- Are you still stuck on something that didn’t work out? Have you tried analyzing what happened and attempting to find the reasoning God may have closed that door?
