Jeremiah 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.” (NIV).
Today God is saying to you, “WHILE IN PROCESS, STICK TO THE PLAN!”
Now, in case you didn’t know, absolutely nothing takes God by surprise! He is, in fact, the BEST Master Planner ever known! Think about it: If He’s planned the entire universe, and not one ounce of it has yet to fail, do you really think He’s incapable of fulfilling the plans He has for your life?!
Let's take a peek at one Scripture from the Old Testament and one from the New Testament: Genesis 1:1-2, "In the beginning God (Elohim) created [by forming from nothing] the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void or a waste and emptiness, and darkness was upon the face of the deep [primeval ocean that covered the unformed earth]. The Spirit of God was moving (hovering, brooding) over the face of the waters." (AMP) And yet, you're concerned that God doesn't have a plan for your life? You're doubting, fearful, anxious and worried about what God has planned for you, when He's already proven He can Create Anything and Everything out of Absolutely Nothing?! He created the Heavens and the Earth, and you doubt He can handle your life? John 1:1-2, "In the beginning [before all time] was the Word (Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself. He was [continually existing] in the beginning [co-eternally] with God." (AMP) Pay attention, He was in the beginning before all time and is even now continually existing says the Bible. So why are you stressed out over what will come up over the course of your life, when you serve the One Who was here before it all began and is still here keeping it all under control? How can you possibly not trust Him to keep His Word that He has a plan for your life?! Saints, today is the day you began to trust God like never before, no matter how dark your current circumstances may be! He has a proven track record that when He plans something it comes to pass, and His record will never take a loss or come up short of all it's promised! He has a plan, now all you have to do is trust Him and stick with it!
Even Joseph discovered that when your family turns against you, your friends let you down and you finish up in trouble, GOD STILL HAS A PLAN! Ultimately, looking back Joseph could say, “...you PLANNED evil against me but God used those SAME PLANS for my good...” (Genesis 50:20 MSG). People of God, When Your Situation Seems Too Hard To Handle And Downright Impossible To Explain, REMIND YOURSELF THAT GOD SAID, “...I Know The PLANS I Have For You...” And neither God nor His plans nor His Word can ever fail! Isaiah 55:11, “So will My Word be which goes out of My mouth; It will not return to Me void (useless, without result), Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.” (AMP) The Message Bible says it like this: “So will the words that come out of My mouth not come back empty-handed. They’ll do the work I sent them to do, they’ll complete the assignment I gave them.” (MSG) God’s Word Will Always Successfully Accomplish the Assignment He Gave Them to Complete! Embrace This: God doesn't do incomplete assignments! Philippians 1:6, " I am convinced and confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will [continue to] perfect and COMPLETE IT until the day of Christ Jesus [the time of His return]." (AMP). So When He Promises You, “…I Know the PLANS I Have for You…”, You Can Rest Assured That His Plans Will Come to Pass! People of God, No Matter the Pressure, Stick to the Plan!
Now, believe it or not, but some of us are not even sure God has made up His mind about us, so we keep trying to earn His favor! Saints, Give it up! Receive the truth that God, for Christ’s sake, has DELIBERATELY DECIDED to bless you, REGARDLESS! And the word ‘regardless’ is defined as, ‘despite the prevailing circumstances; without regard for the situation; and despite everything.’ And that’s exactly how God is going to bless you! Regardless of your failures, sin, faults, mistakes, deliberate bad decisions and the like, He’s still going to bless you despite your circumstances, situation, and Everything else! Listen: It doesn’t matter what you’ve done, who you did it with, how many times you did, when you did it last, when you return back to God He blesses you Regardless, as if none of it ever happened! Now who wouldn’t trust His Plans?!
YOU SEE, WHEN GOD DECIDES TO BLESS YOU, TEMPORARY SITUATIONS OR THE OPINIONS OF OTHERS DON’T CHANGE HIS DECISION!
YOU NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT THERE IS NOTHING THE ENEMY DEVISES AGAINST YOU THAT GOD HASN’T ALREADY MADE “...A WAY OF ESCAPE...” For!
Again, Paul writes, “...But God is faithful [to His Word and to His compassionate nature], and He [can be trusted] not to let you be tempted and tried and assayed beyond your ability and strength of resistance and power to endure, but with the temptation HE WILL [ALWAYS] ALSO PROVIDE THE WAY OUT (THE MEANS OF ESCAPE TO A LANDING PLACE) THAT YOU MAY BE CAPABLE AND STRONG AND POWERFUL TO BEAR UP UNDER IT PATIENTLY” (1 Corinthians 10:13 AMP). Observe:
1. In times of testing, you discover just how faithful God is!
2. He knows what you can handle!
3. He will “make a way” so you can exit this season stronger than you entered it, and make you ready for what He has for you next!
So STICK TO THE PLAN! The fact that you have a PROBLEM is a sign that you have a PROMISE! It’s only a matter of time before God reveals it through your PROCESS!
Look at it like this: Jesus knew that Judas would betray Him, YET HE DIDN’T STOP HIM! He could have summoned twelve legions of angels to help Him, YET HE DIDN’T CALL ON THEM! Under the weight of our sins He cried from the cross, “...My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46 NIV). IN SPITE OF ALL THIS, HE UNDERSTOOD IT WAS ALL PART OF THE FATHER’S PLAN! His actions and words, teach us that:
1.
You can be in God’s plan, yet at times feel overwhelmed and alone!
2. When God doesn’t answer, you must stand on the Word He has given you!
3. The pain of this season will eventually give way to the joy God has awaiting you on the other side of it!
So STICK TO THE PLAN!
Jesus says to you, “I have set you an EXAMPLE that you should do as I have done…” (John 13:15 NIV). Why? Because, that’s what real disciples do! The word “Disciple” comes from the Latin Origin “discipulus” which means “Learner.” Disciples are to learn from their Lord and imitate His ways! That’s why Jesus said: “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to Me. Get away with Me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with Me and work with Me—watch how I do it. LEARN the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with Me and you’ll LEARN to live freely and lightly.” (Matthew 11:28-30 MSG). If you would just learn from Him and live like Him, you too will be able to stick to the plan, even when your purpose is under attack!
Jesus Lifestyle Of “Stick-To-It-Ness” Teaches Us How To Function Even When We’re Surrounded By Dysfunction! Understand That The Enemy Will Come Against The Plan Of God In Your Life, Because That Plan Is Like A Hedge Of Protection Around You! As long as you stay in God’s plan, nothing that the enemy does can destroy you! So, when you feel like you’ve reached the end of your rope and you can’t go another step, do what Jesus did—pray, “...Father, I place My life in Your hands!...” (Luke 23:46 MSG). Don’t Give Out! Just Give it to God! Look up and say, “Lord, I’m trusting You to do what I cannot do! Bring me through this! Here it is; I’m turning it over to You! My life, my future, and my all are in Your capable hands!” And why is that such a safe place?! Because Jesus said: “My Father gave my sheep to me. He is greater than all, and no person can steal My sheep out of My Father’s hand.” (John 10:29 NCV). So, if Jesus could hang in there, on nails, surely you can hang in there too! Because the truth is, there will be circumstances that will transpire in your life that will make you feel like you’re literally hanging on by nails. The pain, the frustration, the loneliness, the enemies, the poking, the mockery, the lies, the betrayal, will all feel like too much to bear on some days. And still I say to you, Stick to the Plan of God for your life! Yes, you’re under pressure, but you’re still under purpose too! So Stick to the Plan!
Now, Peter also proved that as long as you keep your eyes on Jesus and stick to the plan, you'll survive! Notice some lessons to keep on hand:
1. BEFORE YOU GET INTO SOMETHING, MAKE SURE IT’S GOD’S WILL FOR YOU! Peter said, “Lord, IF IT’S YOU,...tell me to come to you on the water” (Matthew 14:28 NIV), and Jesus said, “Come” (Matthew 14:29 NIV)! In other words, stop yearning for years for people to confirm and validate you and what God has called you to do! Jesus can confirm and validate you all by Himself, and He can do it immediately and even with one Word: “Come”! So, before you take on something like water-walking, pray and be sure God’s in it! Once you know it’s Him, and from Him, STICK TO THE PLAN! You’ll Began to Walk On What Others Will Only Watch!
2. DON’T EXPECT EVERYBODY IN THE BOAT TO GO WITH YOU! Water-walking is a lonely calling; it sets you apart from those who are timid and security-minded! It also tends to bring criticism from those who think you’re making them look bad by contrast! So stop walking on the water while waiting for the crowd to cheer you on! You do realize they’re still in the boat?! And I promise you, at least one of them hopes you drown! Everybody’s not going to go with you, because not everybody is happy that you’re going in the first place! Get over it!
3. IF YOU WAIT FOR PERFECT CONDITIONS YOU’LL MISS YOUR MOMENT! When Jesus said, “Come,” they were in the middle of a storm! Face it; we’d all like the stars to line up, or some big donor to underwrite the whole project before we make a move! But how often does that happen?! Likewise, it’s not about the Condition it’s about the Command! Peter was doing more than walking on the water in the first place; he was walking on the Word given to him by Jesus! So, what has God told you to do and you’re still sitting instead of walking? No matter what it is, stop waiting for ideal conditions and start doing it!
4. DON’T EXPECT A MISTAKE-FREE PERFORMANCE! Nobody walks on water without fluctuation! The Bible describes its heroes in one sentence: “...Although they were weak, they were given...strength and power...” (Hebrews 11:34 CEV). Believe it or not, all the great men and women of God you admire, go through sinking spells when they cry out, “Lord, save me.” And do you know what? He does! And He’ll do the same for you! Therefore, God is not looking for you to be perfect, He’s simply looking for you to obediently perform! So get to it! Remember, you come from a long line of overcomers who stuck to God’s plan, even through pain: Hebrews 11:32-38, “I could go on and on, but I’ve run out of time. There are so many more—Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, the prophets. . . . Through acts of faith, they toppled kingdoms, made justice work, took the promises for themselves. They were protected from lions, fires, and sword thrusts, turned disadvantage to advantage, won battles, routed alien armies. Women received their loved ones back from the dead. Listen, I don’t care how anointed, gifted, powerful and wonderful you are. You will never have a mistake free performance. However, no matter how faulty your performance, if you stick to the plan, you will fulfill the plan of God for your life.
5. But you have to get over needing people to cheer you on, needing all the conditions of life to line up in your favor, expecting support on every hand, and thinking you can accomplish a perfect performance. Sticking to the plan doesn’t mean you won’t experience being stuck in some places you’d rather not be. After all, Jesus stuck to the plan and it got Him a cross, Paul stuck to the plan and he received a shipwreck, Noah stuck to the plan and he became a laughingstock, Joseph stuck to the plan and he ended up in a pit and prison. In other words, sticking to the plan is not always easy, but worth it. So endure the entire painful process and STICK TO THE PLAN! Remember God KNOWS What He’s Doing, He Has it All Planned Out!
Jeremiah 29:10-11, “This is God’s Word on the subject: “… I’ll show up and take care of you as I PROMISED and bring you back home. I know what I’m doing. I HAVE IT ALL PLANNED OUT—PLANS to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.” (MSG)
Lastly, God's plan for you is for YOU. It's tailor-made just for You. And the term 'tailor-made' is defined as, 'to be made for a particular purpose or person.' Which means, no comparing the plan God has for You with anyone else! God does not deal in Bulk Plans! His plans do not come on an assembly line. They are custom-made for each customer! So, if God isn't comparing His plans and purpose for you with anyone else, make sure you follow His example! Live out the tailor-made plan of God for your life, and stick with it!
“As much as you want to plan your life, it has a way of surprising you with unexpected things that will make you happier than you originally planned. That’s what you call God’s Will.”
“There is no setback you can face in life that God doesn’t already have a comeback plan for.”
“God’s plan is bigger than your mistakes.”
“God has a perfect plan for us. He never does it all at once, just step by step because he wants to teach us to walk by faith, not by sight.”
“God upsets our plan only to set up His own plan. We see our present and plan our future, but God sees our future and plans our present.”
“God can see things that you can’t see. It may not make sense right now, but one day, when God’s whole plan unfolds, you will see what God is up to.”
“If your plans don’t work out, don’t worry, God has better ones.”
“When God doesn’t answer your prayer, it means that He has another plan for you. Just be patient.”
“The most important lesson that I have learned is to trust God in every circumstance. Lots of times we go through different trials and following God’s plan seems like it doesn’t make any sense at all. God is always in control and He will never leave us.” (Allyson Felix)
“God’s plan for your life is a lot better than the one you’ve been working on.”
“I don’t have to figure out why or how or when. God has a plan, and I’m committed to it. That commitment frees me from having to worry about the details.” (Barbara Johnson)
Blessings
J.P. Olson
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