God's Forecast

(Aug. 4th)

This evening when I left for a walk, the sky in front of me was bright with scattered white clouds reflecting the sun. It was quite the pretty picture. I took a mental snapshot as I continued on, enjoying my semi-alone time while pushing my half-asleep, baby with a bubba, in her stroller down the sidewalk. Just as I was mapping out my walk in my head and thinking about how I could probably sneak in a nice long one, a huge drop of water hit me in the back of my head. I turned around and the sky was dark gray. Pound, pound, pound, down they continued. So much for my plan, I thought as I turned the stroller around and started home. (I kept checking on the baby. She slept right through, THANK GOD!!)

I am a planner, especially when it comes to life-changing events. I planned my wedding. I planned all three of my pregnancies. I have planned all of my vacations, including a two week long European vacation that put National Lampoons' to shame. When a damper is put on my plan, I don't like it. Now that I have children, I have all kinds of new plans. Plans for them to be academically inclined, wonderful musicians, and great athletes to name just a few. I even have "spiritual" plans for them, envisioning what influence they will have on others for the kingdom of God. All of these aren't necessarily wrong ideas, I understand. God places vision in us for His purpose sometimes but that isn't what I'm talking about here. What I'm talking about is; My plan vs. God's plan.

Sometimes God's plan comes splattering down on me out of nowhere even when there are signs all around and I'm too busy looking ahead toward my plan to notice. Had I taken my eyes off of my path and looked up behind me I would have seen the gigantic, dark clouds that were rolling in. Thankfully God, so full of mercy, knows I'm the type of person who needs a huge globule of rain to smack the back of my head to get me to look up. He knows something major has to happen in my life for me to seek out His plan. He must laugh at me sometimes when He looks at my life running in all of the circles that I have mapped out. I want to surrender to His plan. I do long to yield-daily. I'm working on that. For now my gracious God keeps throwing down sweet humongous drops of rain right on my head. I hear Him kindly whisper, "Turn around, look up, look to me and I will direct your path."

Jeremiah 29:11
"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."