For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. [Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT)]
For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. [Philippians 4:13 (NLT)]
If there were a Hall of Fame for favorite Bible verses, John 3:16, Jeremiah 29:11, and Philippians 4:13 would be in it; every year, they are the most popular verses on my favorite Bible web site. This year, in a stunning upset, Jeremiah 29:11 edged out perennial favorite John 3:16 for first place with Philippians 4:13 running a close third.
In 2017, John 3:16 easily held first place with Jeremiah 29:11 and Philippians 4:13 in a hotly contested race for the next two spots. In honor of the Electoral College meeting that year, the website determined which of those two verses carried each of the fifty states and gave them electoral votes. Had it been a presidential election, Jeremiah 29:11 would have won with 302 electoral votes. With the nation split into two camps, rather than dividing us into red or blue states, the site asked: “Do You Live in a ‘God Has a Plan’ State or an ‘I Can Do All Things’ State?” While my residence in is a “God Has a Plan” state, I wondered if that truly is my state of mind.
I’m a voter who splits her ticket. Sometimes, I’m accepting of circumstances, serenely confident in God’s plan, and (usually without complaint) easily can step forward in trust and faith. Other times, I’m sure that God has intentionally given me challenges to overcome—challenges to strengthen and mature my faith. Rather than accept the situation, confident in God’s power, I try to surmount the challenging circumstances. The problem arises when I’m unsure about whether I should trust and accept or trust and overcome.
Most of our decisions are made without consciously thinking about God—red or blue shirt, sneakers or sandals, oatmeal or yogurt, walk in the park or at the beach, and so on. We don’t ask God if we should go through the yellow light, where to park, or whether to buy peas or beans. We don’t consult Him about mowing the lawn, making the bed, balancing the checkbook, going to the grocery, or doing the laundry. Although we’re operating on auto-pilot, many of those little decisions can make a difference in our lives. They may determine if we’re in the right place at the right time or in the wrong place at the wrong time. Nevertheless, even if we did stop and pray about even the smallest decision, it’s unlikely that God would provide a definitive answer about all of them. I don’t think it’s because He doesn’t care but rather that He expects us to use our God-given common sense and free will to make our everyday choices godly ones.
Sometimes, even when we’ve asked for His guidance, God seems to be silent. We ask who to marry, which job to take, how much money to give, how much to keep, where to live, what cancer treatment to choose, how to deal with the addicted child, where to attend church, or whether to start a new business and His definitive answer just doesn’t seem to come. There’s no angel, star in the East, burning bush, writing on the wall, or wet fleece. The heavens don’t open, a lamb doesn’t miraculously appear, a donkey doesn’t speak, and a neon sign is unlikely. That God knows the detailed plan doesn’t mean He’s going to tell us what it is!
Perhaps knowing the plan isn’t as important for us as knowing the God who made the plan. He has revealed Himself and everything we need to know about living a godly life in Scripture. The more we know Him, the more we know His answers. We pray and proceed, trusting in the God who loved us enough to sacrifice His son for our salvation, the God whose plans are for good and not disaster, the God who wants to give us a future and hope. We do so, confident that we can do all we need to do through Christ who gives us strength.
Now may the God of peace—who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood—may he equip you with all you need for doing his will. May he produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to him. All glory to him forever and ever! Amen. [Hebrews 13:20-21 (NLT)]
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We know that within a few days of the angel’s visit that Mary went to her cousin Elizabeth’s home, but what of those first few days after the annunciation? Did Mary tell anyone or did she wait until she’d seen proof of Elizabeth’s pregnancy before she truly believed that she, too, was with child? Did she tell Joseph immediately or wait until she returned to Nazareth three months later?
“Over 1 million served,” was the sign Ray Kroc posted at his first McDonald’s franchise in 1955. That number became 100 million in 1958 and was 1 billion in 1963. When the number of burgers served surpassed the 99 billion mark in 1994, operators were told to change their signs to “Billions and Billions Served!” Executives at McDonald’s claim they no longer keep track of how many are served but I don’t believe it! Someone there knows exactly how many of those hamburgers have been sold, along with the number of Egg McMuffins and chocolate shakes.
Since he had a business meeting in Switzerland later in the week, my son went to London over the weekend to see his daughter who is in college there. Nearly every photo texted back to us showed my grand eating. Admittedly, she is a starving college student, living on a tight budget, who has grown tired of eating peanut butter, hummus with veggies, Raman noodles, and pasta in her apartment, so she took advantage of having access to her father and his credit card. With Dad paying the bill, she could again eat steak and lamb chops, indulge in gelato, and stock her pantry with fruit, meat, and cheese from Borough Market. As much as this starving coed needed food, what she really needed was a visit from home. Hugs from her father probably offered more nourishment than any amount of food. His visit did more than replenish her cupboards; it recharged her emotional batteries.
I’ve never seen a field of lilies in blossom but they couldn’t be any more beautiful than the field of narrow-leaved sunflowers that surrounded me at the bird sanctuary recently. Standing in wonder as their yellow faces smiled down on me, I was reminded of Jesus’s words about the lilies of the field. When I came upon a cardinal pecking away at a large ripe berry, I remembered His words regarding the birds. While watching the bird enjoy his breakfast, the story of Elijah and the ravens that fed him came to mind and I thought about God’s promise to provide.
“Watch out!” Jesus warned them. “Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” [Matthew 16:6 (NLT)]
