What plans, Lord?
“For I know the plans I have for you,”
says the Lord, “plans for welfare
and not for calamity to give you a future
and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11) NASB
I love that verse. But if I’m honest, I also hate that verse.
Okay, maybe hate is too extreme, but I definitely had a strong negative
reaction when the verse came to mind recently in response to an incredibly
disappointing situation.
I am the Chairperson of the Pastor Search Committee for our church. We
have been working for months to find the right person to fill the role of our
next pastor, and we thought we had found the perfect individual. We were making
arrangements to hear him preach when I received an email notifying me that he
had withdrawn himself from consideration.
I was stunned. What had gone wrong? Had we missed a sign from God that the
man wasn’t the pastor for us? Why didn’t the man want us? Why would God allow
us to get to this point in the process before bringing everything to a
screeching halt?
Then Jeremiah 29:11 came to mind, and I mentally rolled my eyes. “Really,
God? That’s what you have to say? I don’t want to start over. I want this man
as our new pastor. Maybe he’s not hearing you correctly. Perhaps, I should call
him.”
The verse came to mind again, (admittedly a bit louder) and I slumped
back in the chair. “Forgive
I’m still not sure why this situation happened like it did. Maybe I
never will. But I’ve chosen to rest in the fact that God knows the needs of all
parties involved as well as His plans for each of us. It will all work out in
the end.
How has God ministered to you during a difficult time in your life?
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