Making Plans

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”

Proverbs 3:5–6

Much of January is dedicated to making our plans, resolutions and goals for the year. The year is fresh and shiny and there’s a lot we want to do with it. I’m a planner through and through and love creating and dreaming up new things for the next twelve months.

Something I’ve learned more and more each year is that it’s crucial for us to include God as we make our plans. I often make my own agenda and I sometimes get frustrated when my plans don’t come to fruition in my own time. Anyone else?

I sometimes forget that it is the Lord’s purposes that prevail (Proverbs 19:21), not mine. James also writes:

Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”
James 4:13-15

It’s crucial for us to be open and receptive to where God leads us, even if it wasn’t where we had planned or it takes longer than we thought. It’s still good for us to plan and dream, but let’s keep our hearts and minds open and willing to take a different path if God decides that’s where we need to be.

When we trust God and lean on Him for wisdom, as Proverbs 3:5-6 instructs, God will direct our steps. He will lead us toward straight paths that He designs. They may not seem straight to us because sometimes they go through the wilderness or challenging terrain, but they will lead us straight to where He wants us to be. He’s a good, good Father and He has our best interests in mind.

As you’re making your plans, dreams, and goals for the year, spend time with God and ask Him these three questions: