‘The Lord will vindicate me; your love, Lord, endures forever— do not abandon the works of your hands.’ Psalms 138:8 NIV®
We are pretty good at making plans. We plan about what grades we want, what stream we choose at college, who our friends would be, where we would live and so on.
But along comes a pin that bursts our bubble. So, we re-do our plan to fit in the old desires. Life goes on and along comes more pins that were not accounted for. Now we re-do our re-done plan. This goes on cos we don’t foresee the pins that lie ahead.
When I was in school, the major plan I had for my life was to be in the US. I had an uncle living with us at that time and he was a whiz at computer. It was the early 90’s and IT industries were booming in India. I have seen him do well at his job and eventually move to the US.
And I wanted just that.
I made a plan. Get an engineering degree, work in an MNC, move to the US and marry a guy who works in IT.
I thought, if I can get a check across all these points, I was sure to have the American dream. So, I did all this.
I got opportunities to work in the US. But Reji could not join me since there was no one else to take care of his mom. His mom was homebound due to severe arthritis and needed supervision cos of other medical conditions as well.
I kept hoping things would become better. Over the months it started becoming clear that Reji was finding it difficult to manage the home front and work at the same time. This only meant one thing for me, give up and return. At that moment, I felt I had no control over things. It was difficult for me to give away all that I looked forward to.
I very reluctantly gave it up and came back to India.
I get it if you find me utterly selfish, and I should have been a better daughter-in-law.
But I could not see beyond certain things especially something that was a part me since my 8th grade.
I know my plans have failed. It has made me live in hurt for a very long time. I am still learning to let God make plans for me. It’s not easy to let someone else make plans for you. Especially if you are a person who likes to have control over things.
But I do understand that God takes every failed plan and weaves a grand plan. He is the grand weaver.
He has a plan to prosper us.
A prosperous plan
Is the one that makes a person thrive. Thrive in famine or drought.
Is the one where riches are abundant. Riches that cannot spoil or be stolen.
Is the one over which the Lord watches.
Can shake the enemy’s base.
Is a foolproof and secure plan. No slowdown can affect it.
After I returned from the US, I have seen God’s faithful love in my life.
I was able to work on projects that gave me independence in the way I worked. For close to 6 years I was able to have a telecommuting lifestyle of work since my older daughter was very young then and I did not have the heart to leave her in a day-care centre. I had a great team at work too. I got opportunities to travel on short assignments to a few other countries. That was something I enjoyed as a part of my work.
None of this was possible because of my skill or ability. It has been God all throughout. His favour remained. It’s so God, right? He is faithful even if we are not.
I am beginning to see a deeper glimpse of His faithful love. I have two young girls to mother now. My prayer is that they too will have God’s unending favour over them.
You may be at a place where things aren’t in your control. It’s like grasping water and you have no idea what to do.
Give your ‘what-to-dos’ to God. He is the Lord who knows what to do and how to do it.
He is the Lord who creates a roadmap for us. Our plans may be ‘off’ the road right now. He will revive it and give it a new direction.
If you are ready to talk to God right now about your situation, I can lead you with this short text of prayer.
Lord, you are all-knowing. You know the plans that I have made. You know everything that is going on with me right now. There are things that I am worried about. There are things I have asked you and I am not sure if I heard you on that.
Please Lord, reveal your plan for my life. Take control of my life and everything in it and help me see your faithful love.
In Jesus name, I ask this prayer. Amen.
Enjoy this song. It’s about learning to trust God and wait.
Spirit Lead Me ~ Michael Ketterer & Influence Music
Have a blessed time with Jesus.
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.comThe “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™