God's Perfect Plan for Us

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11

I recently had an interesting discussion with a friend who said that she wasn't convinced that God had a perfect plan for every believer. I begged to differ with her. The promise above belongs to every child of God, and it's important that all of us believe it and live each day of our lives as though it's true. If we don't, we are at risk of spending a lifetime trying to figure out where we should go, what we should do and who we should be with.

God told the prophet Jeremiah, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations." Jeremiah 1:5 Our call may be different from Jeremiah's, but it's just as important for us to fulfill our purpose as it was for Jeremiah to fulfill his. We are not called to duplicate or imitate anyone else in this life. We are called to become all that God has destined US to be. When we hand God the "steering wheel" of our lives--giving Him complete control--He begins to unveil His plans for us one step at a time. He usually doesn't reveal the "big picture" to us all at once because we'd either become fearful or have an attitude that says, "Okay, God--I can take it from here!" The Lord knows that we need His constant help, so He wisely encourages our dependence on Him.

So why are so many of us believers afraid of surrendering ourselves to God? Perhaps we are afraid that the Lord would ask us to do something we despise, or something that doesn't fit our idea of success. The truth is that we can never be truly happy or successful apart from fulfilling our God-given purpose. Suppose the Lord created one of us to be a bus driver. He could abundantly supply all our needs, and fill our lives with real purpose and meaning as a bus driver, simply because that's our God-given call in life. But suppose we decide we don't want to be a bus driver--we'd rather be a teacher. So we go through all of the expense and training of becoming a teacher, and we never find true peace, joy or satisfaction because we're living our lives doing something that God never created us to do.

There's always something missing in our lives, and we can't deny the emptiness we feel every time we have to face a new day. The truth of the matter is that because God called us to be a bus driver, He has equipped us to enjoy being one. We surely won't enjoy every aspect of our call, but it doesn't matter so much because we have a deep-down satisfaction in our soul that says, "This feels right for me." Sadly, a lot of us don't follow our God-given call simply because of what other people might say or think. Then we wonder why they aren't experiencing the abundant life that Jesus died to give us. OUCH!

Ephesians 2:10 says, "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." When God designed us, He equipped us with everything we would need to fulfill our God-given purpose. He's given us gifts and skills that He wants to help us develop over the course of our lives. If we ask Him what they are, He'll show us. He may direct us to get some special education or training, or He may not. The key to fulfilling our God-given call is to seek the Lord DAILY. Let us not wait until we're at a crossroads in our lives, having to make an important decision that will affect our whole future. If we do, chances are that we will significantly delay receiving the rich rewards God has in store for us.

Hebrews 11:6 says: "You can never please God without faith, without depending on him. Anyone who wants to come to God must believe that there is a God and that he rewards those who sincerely look for him." If we live our lives depending on God's wisdom, guidance and grace daily, we can count on Him to lead us in the path of His greatest blessings. The truth is that there is NO WAY for us to improve on God's perfect plan for our lives. The sooner we get ahold of this truth, the sooner we can begin cooperating with Him to bring it to pass in our lives--and the sooner we can begin reaping His blessed rewards! Prayer: Lord, I believe that You created me for a special purpose, and that You have a perfect plan for my life. I ask that You fulfill Your purpose for me, and help me to do my part by earnestly seeking You daily through prayer and Your Word. Thank You that as I seek You each day, You will "guide me along the best pathway for my life"! Psalm 32:8 AMEN!

In His Love

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