Trusting in God's plan.... What exactly does that mean? Does it mean that we have no say in what happens in our lives? No. Does it mean that we will always be happy with what happens? Absolutely not. Does it mean that we are powerless to control the outcome of any situation? No. Trusting in God's plan can mean so many different things. Sometimes it's easy, but sometimes it's the most difficult thing we have been called on to do. Personally, I have experienced it in many different situations at different times in my life. I may not be 100% correct about what it means to trust in His plan, but I'd like to share what I've arrived at after being faced with several situations back-to-back that left me with no choice but to trust Him.
We have been bombarded the last 6 months with difficult situations: Matt's health, Matt's employment, Ashley, Matt's family, Chelsea's health, my job, and now our pastor at church getting reassigned despite great efforts to keep him by many of our members. (If you've followed this blog at all, you know about all of these except our pastor. However, the rumor mill is responsible for fueling a lot of that fire, so I really don't want to make that the focus of this particular blog post.) In every one of these situations, I got to a point where all I could do was look to God and say, "I trust You!" By doing that, I was never giving up hope or relinquishing my responsibility to do my part. I have had to learn what it means to TRULY trust God in all situations, and it was (and continues to be) far from easy.
All of us have an agenda for our lives. Maybe it's what we are doing today. Maybe it's what we're doing for the next 20 years. But we all have an agenda. I know Matt and I thought we had the rest of our lives mapped out until about 6 months ago. But, God also has an agenda for us. Sometimes, our agenda and His match up. That's when it's easy. That's when we're happy. But, sometimes we want something different for ourselves that what He wants for us. This is when it becomes difficult. We absolutely have the power to keep forcing our own will in our lives to make things happen the way we want them to. We can ignore the subtle messages He sends us from day to day that let us know He really wants us going a different direction. Most of the time, we can actually get what we want by doing this. But, when we exert our own will over God's will, we are, in essence, saying to Him, "Lord, I don't trust you at all, so I'm doing it my way."
What I have learned though, is that my way is not always the best way. For me, trusting His plan means that I know in my heart that He wants what is best for me, whether I agree with it or not. If He is pulling me in a direction I'm not really comfortable with, or even completely opposed to, I have to trust that putting my efforts into making His plan work is exactly what I need to do. I have to find a sense of peace about what is happening around me, and I have to have faith in the fact He has blessings waiting for me on the other side.
Don't get me wrong, there have been many times that I was NOT happy with how His plan unfolded (especially today). I DO get upset and angry about many things that happen in my life. Trusting God does not mean that you are not human. Trusting God does not mean that you are always happy. But, it does mean that in EVERY situation, you move forward thoughtfully and prayerfully and do what He is calling you to do.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and He will make your paths straight. ~Proverbs 3:5-6
I do want to close by saying that I personally want to wish our pastor nothing but the best in his future endeavors. I pray that God blesses him and his family in ways not one could ever expect or comprehend. He has touched our lives in so many ways, and he will be deeply missed!
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