Proverbs 16:3 “Commit your ways to the Lord, and you plans will be established”. As I think about what the last month has brought, I can’t help but say it has been God who is making all things work together. When I first started this whole preparation stage I knew I had to give the whole process up to the lord. But I held onto some of it for some reason. After the first moth of support raising I found myself over a third of the way through my goal of time and less than a third of the way to my financial goal. Me, being a fairly punctual person and wanting things done in my time had some anxiety and felt really stressed. At this point that I was convicted by the Holy Spirit that this is only going to work if God makes it work. Once I really lifted this whole ministry up to God and gave it all to him, I have had a peace that I don’t understand and I have seen the provision that could only come with God’s blessing.
As I read through proverbs 16, another verse hit me; verse 33. “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the lord. Now, I know I am not real familiar with what the exact procedure for casting lots is in this time and I am sure it varied a lot, but what comes to my mind is Star Wars. The scene in Star Wars where obi wan makes a deal for Anakin and they throw the “chance cube” to decide which person he can take. Of course as most of you know Obi Wan uses his “jedi powers” to make the dice land in his favor and thus makes his plan successful. Now I know that it’s probably not accurate to compare a fictional characters ability to move things, to the power of Almighty God but, the principle is the same. No matter what the intents of people involved, Gods plan will be successful. Granted in this example Anakin turned out to be evil, and destroys an entire planet (Darth Vader) but hey, I can only work with what I got.
Some other verses come to mind as I think about Gods direction and provision. Mathew 6:34 says “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has trouble enough of its own”. I don’t mean this to say I don’t have to do anything and God will just give me things. No, I have to do my part but I can trust God to make things happen in his time and it is not up to me. Another verse that I have heard many times in many situations is Jeramiah 29:11 “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”. This verse is in the context of God telling the exile that it will be in His time that the promises will be fulfilled and that the people should go on living the lives that are given to them. What a wonderful relief that is. Knowing God has a wonderful plan for those that are his chosen people. I don’t want to give the impression that life will be grand and you won’t have any struggles but just trust In God and know that he is in control.
Of course there is another side of this that I have often forgotten. What about those who are not a child of God? I should clarify that to be a child of God, you don’t need to be born into a family of the Israelites, have gone to church your whole life or even been a “good person”. In fact all of that is not worth a thing if you are missing the one key. A true relationship with Jesus Christ as your savior. Some religions say you have to do a certain action with certain words and have a ritual to follow, but God doesn’t require much to join his family. In fact anyone can do it. From a small child, to the thief hanging on a cross with only a breath.
If you want to be welcomed into the family of the one true God. You need only ask. Romans 10:8-10 puts it well. “But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: that if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with your heart you believe and are justified, and with your mouth you confess and are saved.
God bless you all