Other plans
When I made such a mess of my life so many years ago, one of the primary things that pointed me down the path to being found by Jesus (I was the lost one, not Him!) was my therapist. I got fired by her as a patient after she yelled at me. That was one of the best things that ever happened to me, by the way. The other best thing was when she told me that I should pray for the people that hurt me.
I started doing that before I actually became a Christian.
If I had to think of one of the pivotal links in the chain that led me to my knees nine years ago now, that was one of them. We are Facebook friends after all these years, and she said something nice about me today. The thing is, though, is that it's not about me, and while I appreciated the comment, I replied in truth that I'm not all that neat. What I am, though, is an example among millions of what Christ can do with a life.
I'm a changed person, but I didn't change me.
I know this because I know the things I still struggle with. For example, when my truck broke down in Julie's yard, she offered me a cigarette. I wanted that smoke. And I didn't at the same time. I know how I quit; why I quit, and I wasn't going to light up just because I had a ton of stress.
I chose to say no to the cigarette.
It may seem a small thing to talk about struggling with, but it's one among many. I saw a beautiful and friendly clerk at a store I went to last week. From appearances, she was about my age, good looking, a bit overweight, but so am I, and not wearing a wedding ring. I know this because I looked. What else I did was just be friendly back, pay for my purchase, and leave without either asking for her phone number or giving her mine. I can chat up a chick. I choose to believe that there's only one chick I need to chat up.
Sometimes I have to choose to believe when I can't see. I've been seeing a lot about that lately. It's just best for me if I don't try and go the way I think we should be going. (we being God and I). I'm not driving. So I try not to make my own plans.
Plans require execution. You plan something, you figure out the details, and then you do it. On Tuesday I planned to mow the back 40 and go to work. Tuesday had other plans, and those plans extended into Wednesday. There were things that happened both days to me that I hadn't planned on.
My Wednesday plans were derailed as I mentioned. I hate missing Bible study on Wednesdays but I couldn't get out of bed for the pain I was in from hurting my back again. Today was a better day and I made it to work. But not to the National Day of Prayer event in Ogden, which was my plan.
Two minutes before going, I got a phone call from the ex. She had a mini-catastrophe that I was able to help her out with but at the cost of doing what I wanted to do. In traffic on the way home, I offered up my voice in joining the group downtown in prayer for our country. I wasn't there but I could do what I could from where I was, I suppose.
I'm not the author of my story. I'm merely the storyteller these days. When I was writing the book, I was writing a dark comedy that ended in tragedy. God's story in my life is one of redemption. His is working out much better than mine ever did.
His plans aren't mine and I am always mindful of this powerful lesson I learned: I don't expect to make plans and have God bless them. Sometimes, He does, but I also know that His word tells me that He will work out HIS plans for my life. It doesn't say He will work out MY plans for my life.
So sometimes you make plans and God overrides them.
He can do that. He's God.
I started doing that before I actually became a Christian.
If I had to think of one of the pivotal links in the chain that led me to my knees nine years ago now, that was one of them. We are Facebook friends after all these years, and she said something nice about me today. The thing is, though, is that it's not about me, and while I appreciated the comment, I replied in truth that I'm not all that neat. What I am, though, is an example among millions of what Christ can do with a life.
I'm a changed person, but I didn't change me.
I know this because I know the things I still struggle with. For example, when my truck broke down in Julie's yard, she offered me a cigarette. I wanted that smoke. And I didn't at the same time. I know how I quit; why I quit, and I wasn't going to light up just because I had a ton of stress.
I chose to say no to the cigarette.
It may seem a small thing to talk about struggling with, but it's one among many. I saw a beautiful and friendly clerk at a store I went to last week. From appearances, she was about my age, good looking, a bit overweight, but so am I, and not wearing a wedding ring. I know this because I looked. What else I did was just be friendly back, pay for my purchase, and leave without either asking for her phone number or giving her mine. I can chat up a chick. I choose to believe that there's only one chick I need to chat up.
Sometimes I have to choose to believe when I can't see. I've been seeing a lot about that lately. It's just best for me if I don't try and go the way I think we should be going. (we being God and I). I'm not driving. So I try not to make my own plans.
Plans require execution. You plan something, you figure out the details, and then you do it. On Tuesday I planned to mow the back 40 and go to work. Tuesday had other plans, and those plans extended into Wednesday. There were things that happened both days to me that I hadn't planned on.
My Wednesday plans were derailed as I mentioned. I hate missing Bible study on Wednesdays but I couldn't get out of bed for the pain I was in from hurting my back again. Today was a better day and I made it to work. But not to the National Day of Prayer event in Ogden, which was my plan.
Two minutes before going, I got a phone call from the ex. She had a mini-catastrophe that I was able to help her out with but at the cost of doing what I wanted to do. In traffic on the way home, I offered up my voice in joining the group downtown in prayer for our country. I wasn't there but I could do what I could from where I was, I suppose.
I'm not the author of my story. I'm merely the storyteller these days. When I was writing the book, I was writing a dark comedy that ended in tragedy. God's story in my life is one of redemption. His is working out much better than mine ever did.
His plans aren't mine and I am always mindful of this powerful lesson I learned: I don't expect to make plans and have God bless them. Sometimes, He does, but I also know that His word tells me that He will work out HIS plans for my life. It doesn't say He will work out MY plans for my life.
So sometimes you make plans and God overrides them.
He can do that. He's God.
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