Proverbs 19

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“ Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” - Proverbs 19:21

I remember having a discussion about prayer in one of my small groups when I was in high school.  We talked about how sometimes it can be hard to understand the point of praying if God’s purpose is going to prevail anyway. I am such a planner. I like knowing what is going to happen and surprises are not fun to me. I don’t think God wants us to go through life never planning anything, but I also think he wants a part in all of our plans.

So how do we balance these two things? How do we make our plans and still take God’s plan to heart? God’s sovereignty does not relieve us of the responsibility for our decisions; instead, it creates the additional responsibility of seeking God’s will and aligning our decisions with his will. So what questions can we ask ourselves to make sure we are on the right path?

• Are we going to be able to glorify God in the direction we decide to take?
• Are we making the decision joyfully? (Note that being joyful and being happy are two different things.)
•  Are we approaching these decisions prayerfully and with thanksgiving?

So what happens if we decide to ignore the path that we know God wants for us and instead choose the worldly path? He gives us the free will to make that choice even though the consequences may be painful. He will send people into our lives and he will make every attempt to speak to us along the way. This becomes the long, round-a-bout direction our lives tend to take. But wouldn’t it be great if we could understand that God’s plan is bigger and better than anything we could possible imagine? Don’t you want the best God has in store for you?  

How could your daily decisions differ if you asked these 3 questions?

Blessings,

Karlie Berard

Large Group Coordinator

Student Ministries