Plans

The baby shower for our daughter yesterday was overwhelming. She got all kinds of wonderful gifts for the baby and had a wonderful time visiting with family and friends, along with eating awesome food! This child was not necessarily planned by her parents, but she was certainly in God's plan. We heard speakers this morning talk about going with "Plan B". I think they would consider this Plan B but are excited about this new journey. We all have stories we can tell of when our Plan A did not work out and we had to resort to Plan B. In fact, I think the speakers were right when they said that very rarely does Plan A work. There are always changes to be made, negotiations about specifics, compromises from both sides (but only on those things that are not moral absolutes!), and then going forward with the plan. The catch to all of this is that you have to be willing to do those things - be open to changes, negotiations, compromises, etc. to go forward. In addition - you have to be willing and ready to fight for what you know is right. The illustration used this morning was from Numbers and Joshua. The Israelite people were preparing to cross the Jordan into the Promised Land. God did not just hand this to them and say "Here - go live the easy life and enjoy it!" They had to be willing to make the sacrifices for what they wanted. I think we want the easy way (I always do because it's easy - DUH!), but if it's not worth fighting for, it may not be worth having! The things in our lives that are the most precious to us cost us something! Just because we have to make adjustments to our plans doesn't mean it's not the right plan. God may have things we need to learn and the way He teaches us is for us to have to go through some of these adjustments to get us to the place He wants us to be. I would have preferred to not move umpteen million times as a child or as an adult, but God has used those moves and brought friends into my life I would never have known without the moves. I would not have chosen some of the situations my family has had to deal with, but God has things for each of us to learn in the dark times. He will not leave us - He promises that! But He can use those times to teach us about His faithfulness and our need for Him. His greatest desire is for each of us to have a close, intimate relationship with Him and that need is also placed in each one of us. The phrase is "There is a God shaped hole in every human heart! Only He can feel that space." He can take our Plan A or Plan B, C, D, etc. and make us into the person He wants us to be. That is my heart's desire!