Today's Reading - Proverbs 19

Man's Plans | God's Purpose

You’ve probably heard it many times, “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.” Don’t let your familiarity keep you from being awestruck and astonished by those words. Meditate on this truth for a moment – God has a plan for YOU!

In a world with nearly eight billion people, it’s easy to feel small—to feel as if our day-to-day lives aren’t worth much, especially when we’re occupied with seemingly mundane and unimportant matters. Yet God has a purpose and a plan for each and every one of us. We all have unique gifts, talents, positions, perspectives, and callings. God uses this tremendous diversity to carry out his will, and his plans are always bigger, bolder, and better than anything we could ever imagine.

Psalm 33:11 tells us, “The plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of His heart through all generations.” It is an undeniable truth of Scripture that God has a “master narrative” (or “metanarrative”) by which He is governing our planet and guiding the affairs of our lives. It is this narrative and purpose that God is busy fulfilling every day. In a “macro” sense (largescale), His purpose covers the entirety of human history from the creation of the universe – to the redemption of mankind – to the events of the end times and ultimate end of our planet.

In a “micro” sense (smaller scale), God also has a master narrative for your life. Even before you were born, God knew the purpose and plan He had for you. As he told the prophet Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:5)

In other words, you can't really fight against God or against God's plans. You may be making all kinds of plans. You may be figuring out various schemes, but ultimately, God's word and His purpose is going to stand. There is an old Greek saying, "The dice of the gods are loaded." That means you just can't go against God's will and win. God has said certain things and you may scheme and devise all you want. But the purpose of the Lord for your life is going to stand. He will arrange and establish your plans.

A person may make plans, but God is the one who determines their outcome. He knows your unseen motives and controls events according to His largescale purposes and His individual plan for your life. It is vitally important, therefore, to always bring God into your planning. When your wisdom comes from God, your decisions will always be right. The mysterious and amazing thing is that you may think your plan was your idea, but in the end, God planted that idea in your heart and mind because it was His purpose to do so. God’s purpose will prevail.