Gina Caswell Kelly
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah 1:5
Before you were ever born, God had a plan for your life. That is hard to believe, isn’t it? But it is true! Just as God was telling Jeremiah, when He was telling him about the mission God had before him, it is true for you, as well. God created you with loving hands and placed in you His plan for what you are to become in this world. He has a divine plan for your life.
People say that it is hard to know what God wants from our lives. Sometimes, it does seem like a bit of a mystery when things do not seem to be working out around us. It often appears like God is trying to make us guess what it is He has planned for our lives. This is not true. You know, when you were a kid, your parents never called you in to tell you what they needed you to do and then made you just keep guessing or trying things until you figured out what it was. They would just say, “Go take out the trash, please.” And you did it. God does not work much differently than that.
The difference is the relationship. We spend time with our parents. We learn about them and they learn about us. We talk. We laugh. We cry. We truly know each other. This is exactly the relationship your heavenly Father desires from you! When you spend time drawing close to Him, His desires for you life are much easier to see. This is one reason it is so important to develop that personal relationship with the Father. You have to know Him in order to know His plan.
One way to get closer to God’s plan is to get further away from what you already know He doesn’t want for you. Imagine you are standing in the middle of a room. On the left is the farthest from God. On the right is growing nearer to Him. So, you start by taking steps to the right. Steps away from those things that you know God does not want in your life. As in, you know He doesn’t want you stealing or killing. So you sidestep to the right. You know He wants you to be honest and fair. So you sidestep to the right. As you eliminate from your life the things you know He doesn’t want, and replace them with those things you know He does want, pretty soon you will find yourself standing right where He wanted you. All because you chose to follow Him and only choose those things which draw you closer. A bit of a simplistic explanation, but it is all true.
On further in Jeremiah 29:11, God says, “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.”
Just as God told Jeremiah, “I have big plans for you,” He is saying the same thing to you today. He has big plans for you today. Plans to build you up and not destroy. Plans that will make a difference in the world around you. Work on finding His plan for your life. It will make a difference!
