A man’s heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps. Proverbs 16:9
Are you a planner or wing it kinds of person? I am a planner. I love planners. I love everything to be scheduled. It is very hard for me to wing things, to be carefree. Read Romans 15: 23-33. How many times have you made plans, only for the Lord to change them, to direct your steps in a different way?
This has happened to me many times. Boy, am I glad He led the way. As a teenager, I made plans to get married at the age of 21-22. God had other plans and I didn’t get married till I was 27. I had plans for what college I was going to do and how I was going to do ministry. Never in my mind did I think I would become an ordained minister. Well here, I am today an ordained minister. God directs our steps.
Let’s take a look at Paul’s life and the plans he made. Let’s see what happened and what didn’t. Read Acts 22:24-29; Act 23:11; Acts 27; Acts 28:1-10; Acts 28:11-31.
- Paul was almost whipped by Roman soldiers until he told them that he was a Roman citizen
- He had a dream from the Lord telling him not to be afraid because he would share the good news in Rome eventually
- He was sent to Rome as a prisoner aboard a ship that encountered a storm, he was shipwrecked on an island of Malta
- He suffered a snake bite that didn’t turn harm him so that the people of Malta thought he was a god.
- He finally arrived at Rome and lived under house arrest as a prisoner for two years where he boldly preached the good news.
These were not exactly the plans that he wrote about in the letters to Romans. In fact, he didn’t make most of these plans. We don’t know if he ever made it to Spain. Paul had plans, yet God directed them in a different way. As we move with God, He directs us. What are your plans for next week? Next Month? Next year? Are you praying over your plans?
Read Romans 15:30-33. What did Paul ask the Roman church to pray for? Paul as we learned had some great struggles. He asked the church to join him in prayer. He prayed to be rescued but got imprisoned. Paul prayed that the church in Jerusalem would accept his gift, and they did. He prayed about his visit to Rome would be joyful and encouraging, even though he was house arrested, he did have a powerful ministry there.
When you make plans, know that sometimes God will direct your steps in different ways. The events you plan won’t turn out exactly as you plan them. Trust God’s ways are for your best interest, even if we don’t understand at the moment.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for directing our steps. I pray that you will speak to us about what our plans are and if you have different plans for us. Give us the peace we need when things don’t go as we have planned.
In Jesus Name
Amen
