Follow the Plan

Jan 5, 2024 | by Anthony Wade

If I had to guess, I would venture to say that you have some plans in place for your life. At one point or another, you have probably thought about and even written down a retirement plan, a weight loss or exercise plan, a plan for your education, your career, or even plans for marriage. Even the person who likes to live the impromptu life makes plans for Friday night!

Having plans in place in our life is a good thing. In fact, it would be somewhat irresponsible to not have some plans in place for your life. The bigger question today is, “How did you come about your plans?”

Did you make a retirement plan based on greedy desires? Is your workout plan based on vanity? Did you plan your relationship based on the fear that if you don’t get married now, you never will? Do you follow a Bible reading plan so that you won’t feel the guilt of peer pressure around your friends at church?

A well-known passage of scripture is Proverbs 3:5-6. It says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” So, where is your trust? Are you trusting in the Lord? You need to truly believe that His wisdom and plan is better than “your own understanding.” When you recognize that in all your ways, including your plans, then He can “direct your paths.” The Hebrew there is literally saying that He will “make your paths straight,” or pointed in the right direction. And I can promise you that He is better at that than you are.

Don’t be so vain as to think you have this all figured out or feel the pressure to think you need to. Proverbs 16:9 says, “A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.” The word for directs here is a totally different Hebrew word than the one in the verse above. This word means to be established, fixed, securely determined, arranged, or prepared. You see, you can make all the plans that you want, but your Heavenly Father is the only qualified authority on how to see true success in your life. Only He can establish and prepare your journey with precision and perfection.

As a New Covenant believer, there is plenty of help for you to walk these things out by the power of the Holy Spirit. So how do we go about doing this? In Matthew 6:10, Jesus told us to pray that our Father’s “…will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” Do you see that? Jesus wants you to know today that it’s not only okay to desire God’s will or plans to be done in your life, but you should ask for it and expect it!

And are you ready for this? Hebrews 13:20-21 says, “Now may the God of peace… make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ…” My friend, this is what God desires to do in your life! He so wanted you to be able to walk out His plan for your life that He made you complete in Christ Jesus. Then, He promised to work those things in you through Christ. Your job is to simply receive that by faith and obediently walk it out.

So, before you make plans to lose weight, exercise, quit smoking, or read your Bible more, put God first. Ask Him what your plan should be and how to execute it. Seek God’s Kingdom first and He can establish your steps to walk those plans out in His favor and with His provision. You’ll be more successful because He will be at work making your paths straight.

Make the decision to follow the plan… HIS plan… today!

Pastor Anthony