Changed plans are frustrating. When you over-prepare yourself for one thing, and then you end up going through a completely different thing, it can get disheartening. In my three years of college, I've learned quite a few life lessons, but one that continues to trip me up is accepting unplanned detours. I am a die-hard, mega-organized, OCD plan-aholic, so when I set my mind to something and plans change...you can imagine the anger and pouting that follows.
Recently, most of my plans have changed. I've gone through a switch in my major and a switch in minors (twice). I've had to move out of the house I've lived in for two years, say goodbye to my three roommates, and move into a new apartment (with three new roommates). I've had to adjust to being the president of an organization that I've been a part of for three years. And I've had to become accustomed to still being in college while my boyfriend works at a grown up job in Atlanta every day. I have had nights where I couldn't sleep because I was so anxious about the plans that could have been, but were no longer. If you are a plan-aholic like me (or even if you aren't): God is in control, not you. I know that phrase is semi-cliche and terribly overdone, but it's the solid truth. Once you let go of the plans you have for your life and let God show you the plans He already made for you, life becomes a lazy river instead of raging rapids.
Just like our Earthly fathers plan and pay for vacations months before leaving, our Heavenly Father has planned and knows the paths we'll take in life. It's just like proms or formals. We don't see any of the prior set up, we just get fancy and come dance. If we started treating our lives like there's already a giant check-list in God's hand, instead of pretending that we can make a thousand and one successful checklists for ourselves, we would finally feel peace.
In Proverbs, there's an amazing truth written:
"Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand." -Proverbs 19:21
Many are the plans that we make for ourselves. That means that we aren't just a little faithless, we're very faithless. What a slap in the face that is. We make plans when God already has plans laid out for us. That's like you lovingly making plans for a friend's birthday and then realizing that that friend already planned an entire outing without letting you in on it. The difference here is that God sees us not trusting Him. He sees us wake up every morning and make checklists. He sees us write every single thing down in our planners. And He sees the discouragement we feel in our hearts when everything we plan doesn't happen. And the thing is, in the beginning, He already knew that we would fail to fully trust Him. Makes you think twice, huh? That isn't to say that lists and planners are evil, but it is to say that lists and planners aren't the beginning and the end (because God is the Alpha and the Omega).
With that being said, there's another verse from Proverbs that always makes my heart so happy:
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding." -Proverbs 3:5
This is a verse that has gotten me through plenty of tear-filled nights. When we trust in the Lord instead of in ourselves and our plans, we see God's will for our lives more clearly. If we're constantly fighting what God already planned eons ago, our lives are filled with frustration, tension, and countless tears, but when we let go and trust in God, our lives are filled with peace. So take heart, child of God, your King loves you, knows you, and has saved you...He does not make mistakes, and whatever is happening in your life is still part of His perfect plan.
