God's Plans

Good Morning,

Jeremiah 29:11-13 (NIV)
"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. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."
John 10:10 (NIV)
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

We all face difficult times and troubling circumstances in our lives. There comes a time in everyone's life when we wonder about the "why" of it all and begin to question God about what is going on in our lives. There are those of us who read these words who are probably having problems and tough circumstances in our lives right at this very moment. It happens all the time and, unfortunately, it seems like these things happen too often.

Okay, first I want to say that I have no idea WHY God allows things to happen in our lives. That's not for me to know or fully understand. I DO know that often we are allowed to face tough times because after we've lived and learned through those times then we can help others who face the same or similar situations. But, I know that's not always the reason that bad things happen to good people.

In Jeremiah we read that God said, "I know the plans I have for you...plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Yes, today...or in the past...we might be going through difficulties and even extreme difficulties, but we've got to remember that God DOES have a plan for each of us and it is a plan for good. We also have to remember that He also said, "Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you." This, my friends, is so very, very important to remember. We have to call on God and continue to pray to Him. He IS listening when we pour out our hearts. "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." This, I think is a key. We have to seek God with ALL WE HAVE! With all our hearts. THEN we will find Him.

Now, we know what God said in Jeremiah. Let's not forget what Jesus told us about our lives.

Some of the reasoning of the troubles we have are because of the enemy, the thief, who "comes only to steal and kill and destroy." You see, some of our problems are caused because we listen to that siren's song of the devil and go places, do things that are NOT of God...and then we have to face the consequences. I'm not saying that ALL troubles come in this way, but many do. We sometimes bring it on ourselves by our own actions which give a sliver of entry for the enemy to come in and do what it is he does...steal, kill, and destroy.

HOWEVER...Jesus came so that we "may have life, and have it to the full." The exact opposite of what the devil does, you see. Jesus tells us with His words that He came so that the plans God told us about in Jeremiah could be and would be fulfilled. Jesus telling us about having life to the full is the same as God telling us that He has plans to prosper us, give us hope, and give us a future.

These two verses are so very closely related, I feel. At least they are speaking to me today to tell me that the hard times we face are only temporary and that Jesus promises us a full life that will be according to God's plans for us.

So, when the times we face get difficult, let's not forget God's promises!

Love, peace, and blessings,

David