Plans, Plans, and More Plans!

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD.” –Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT)

I don’t know about you, but the fact that God is a planner puts me at ease. I love knowing that He already has all the details worked out ahead of time. It gives me great peace that nothing surprises Him. It warms my heart that He loves me enough to have those plans for me. That means He’s thought about me. I’ve been on the mind of God!

I am a planner myself, so I know the great deal of thought that goes into planning. I like to be prepared so I go through everything that could possibly happen. What will I do if plan A goes south? What if plan B falls flat on its face? I like knowing what is going to happen next. I like knowing what I am going to do tomorrow. Or next Friday. Or next year. I do not like surprises and I find it hard to be spontaneous.

Recently, I sat down and made a “five year plan” for my life. I prayed. I planned. I wrote everything down. It’s all right there in black and white. I have goals and I know what I should be doing in October of 2016 to get to where I’m going in my life. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s good to have goals. It’s good to be conscientious about the future. If God is a planner, then I think it’s ok if we look ahead in our lives, too. The problem is, however, that there are times when we can be so caught up with what God has planned for us in the future that we forget to live in the present. We’re always looking ahead to what is next instead of embracing the moment we are in. We neglect to realize that He also has plans for us right now. We pray, “Lord, show me Your plans for my life,” expecting Him to show us 10 years from now, but forgetting about what He has planned for us in the present.

God is not a procrastinator. His plans for your life do not begin in five years. In one year. In a month. Or even in one day. His plans for your life began before you were even born. He has orchestrated your whole life up to this point, and He’s in control of the rest of it from this moment forward. Pray for God to show you the plans He has for you, fully expecting them to start immediately. And then live in the moment. God has a plan for your life right now!