It happens. Life s going well, it seems. You’re comfortable where you are. You’re enjoying what you’re doing. As far as you know, you could spend the rest of your life living where you live and doing the work you’re doing.
Then, God unexpectedly changes your plans. Sometimes it happens excitedly, sometimes painfully –but surprisingly in either case. What do you do in those times?
- Know that God always sees a bigger picture than you do. You know that truth already, but it’s sometimes tough to remember it in the immediacy of an unexpected moment. As I’ve written elsewhere, we see the black hull of the ship, but God sees the beauty of the ship floating across the ocean. No unexpected change in your life catches God by surprise.
- Review God’s past tense care for you. When David potentially faced the Philistine giant, it was God’s protection of him in the past (in those times, against lions and bears) that convinced him of God’s protection in the present (1 Sam 17:34-37). When you remember that God has never let you down in the yesterdays of your life, you can still trust Him with the unknowns—and with the sometimes alarming “knowns”—of today.
- Know that God’s planned future for you is always best. You know that’s ultimately the case, as we believers trust we will spend eternity with Him and with one another. In the meantime, you can know that wherever God’s path takes you in the days to come will prove best for you, too. The difficulty is trying to cling to that truth when the path immediately under our feet is unclear.
- Put the last two reflections together: know that God’s past-tense care + His future-tense promises = reason to trust Him in the present. It really is that simple. He who always has provided for you, and who will have always provided for you when you later look back, will indeed provide for you today. He who is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Heb 13:8) takes care of His people in all three tenses.
- Remember that He knows the roadmap of your life, even when it takes turns you had not expected. I’m sure you recognize that this point takes us back to point #1 above. I think about this truth of God’s plan every time I read this description of the Hebrews’ route when they left Egypt: “When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them along the road to the land of the Philistines, even though it was nearby; for God said, ‘The people will change their minds and return to Egypt if they face war.’ So he led the people around toward the Red Sea along the road of the wilderness” (Exo 13:17-18). God’s plan was not what others might have considered wisest or most convenient—but it was right.
I pray these words are helpful to you today. Let us know in the comments section how we might pray for you if needed.
