The future can be a complicated topic to talk about. It can be somewhat scary and uncomfortable to be unsure as to what the future will hold for us. As humans, we like and are more comfortable with things that are familiar to us. We enjoy things that we can control and there is nothing wrong with that. This is why we plan our future - to be prepared and to feel like we have somewhat of a control over what will happen in the future. We plan our career paths, when we have to be in and out of college, when we plan to propose or get married, where we will live and work years from now, etc.
Now, don't misunderstand me - there is nothing wrong with planning for the future. It is actually encouraged. I myself have plans to become a doctor, to get married, to eventually go back to work in Puerto Rico, etc. However, we must also understand that God may have different plans for our lives. It is hard for many of us to think that after all the hard work and effort we have put and will put into our future plans, God may have something else in mind.
The Bible is full of accounts of people who had big plans in mind and then God changed them. Galatians and Acts show us how Paul actually persecuted Christians. He had plans to arrest and persecute Christians in Damascus when all of the sudden Jesus himself appeared before him. From that moment on, Paul became one of the greatest pillars of Christianity and probably the reason many of us today have heard of Christ.
Also, 2 Kings 5 tells the story of a Syrian general who had leprosy. He hears that the prophet Elisha in Israel can heal him and so he begins planning. He planned to get the king's approval, travel to Elisha, Elisha would pray over him, and whether or not he would be healed he would return to Syria to continue the war. Instead, when he gets to the prophet he is greeted by a messenger (not the great prophet he had hoped for). The messenger tells him to wash himself in the Jordan River seven times to be healed.
Take a moment to understand what is probably going through the general's mind. He had every right to simply turn around and go home to what he wanted to do and was used to. However, this general and great soldier of the Syrian army takes a leap of faith and follows the instructions and washes himself seven times in the filthy Jordan River.
Ok, yes, their plans din't work out, but what does that have to do with me? The point is that God has better plans in mind. There is our plans and there's God's plans, and we have the choice to be humble enough and to have enough faith to accept His plan for our lives. Many people don't like the idea that God doesn't just let us do what we want and think is best.
However, It is comforting to me not only does God give us the choice to trust His plans, but that the God who created the universe - the who cares for me and loves me, who knows the future, who knows everything, and who knows what He's doing - that He has a plan for my life better than anything I can plan for myself.
Morgan Freeman (who plays God) and Steve Carell (who plays Evan Baxter) illustrate this perfectly in the movie Evan Almighty. Here is a clip that shows a bit of how God's plans and ours may conflict, but ultimately God knows best.
May we trust in the Lord through all of our days.
