God's Plan

Last night, I was thinking a lot about God’s perfect will for our lives and such. I was riding in the car to go practice when it popped up in my mind. I was thinking of just passing it by, saving the thought for another time, but, I decided to entertain it for a while. I felt something good would come from it. What I basically came to the realization of was something that changed the way I look at my life, and it might yours too. That is why I am writing it in here.

I am not going to include a big bunch of information about all the fullness of what I thought. Instead, I am going to just put the basic stuff down in here so you guys can understand what I was thinking. I wonder if any of you can identify with me on this.

As I have gone through life I have been afraid that perhaps I wasn’t where God wanted me to be. I mean, maybe one of those big choices I botched caused me to fall from where I was supposed to be or from God’s plan for my life. You can easily see how this would cause me to feel like God’s best for me was now forever out of reach. But then I realized something about that. I am where I am. God’s plan for me has not failed. He knew about the mistakes that I would make. He knew what life changing choices I would make and He has that as a part of His plan. They aren’t a part of His plan because He is causing us to sin, but because He knows what choices we are going to make before we even make them. (Can you tell that I believe that God gives us free will?) God’s plan for our life is never messed up. He never has to make adjustments because He already knows what we are going to do. His plans don’t fail.

So, If you are in a spot to where you are thinking, “I messed up so bad and now what do I do” don’t worry. God’s plan for your life is still going. You don’t have to think that, “I have to find my way back to being in God’s perfect will for my life” because you are in the middle of His plan right now. His plan includes our foibles and mistakes. (Of course... if you are in the middle of sin then you need to get out of it) His plan for salvation unto the entire earth included the death and resurrection of His Son. He knew that Israel would reject His son. That was already part of His plan, but that doesn’t mean that His plan for Israel is destroyed and He has to come up with some new one to adjust to our mistakes. You are where you are. You have made the mistakes that you have made. God’s plan for your life has not become invalid even if doors are closed to you forever now, because God opens new doors that were in His plan for your life before your life even began.

Of course we can't use this as a license to say that I can do whatever I want and then come back to God. Yes, God knows what you will do, but you will also be held accountable for what you do. This is not permission to make mistakes but rather an inspiration of hope for those who have and will sin, that their lives in Christ aren't over... that God's plan for their lives has not been ruined... that God will still use them if they yield to God right now. Forget the past as far as the way it chains you down. Learn from it and put it away, "press on" toward the goal of the upward calling in Jesus Christ. Paul talks about the way he thinks of his past... Phi 3:13-14 "Brethren, I count not myself yet to have laid hold: but one thing I do, forgetting the things which are behind, and stretching forward to the things which are before,
I press on toward the goal unto the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."

You haven’t messed up to the point that you can never get back to the place where you are supposed to be in Christ. You are where you are now, so get up, and get with it. Don’t let the enemy lie to you and tell you that God can’t use you anymore because of your mistakes. God’s plan for your life isn’t ruined, it’s coming to pass. ;)