I don’t like to be wrong. It’s that simple. I think I’m a relatively smart person, so to think that somehow MY plans didn’t work out or I was heading in the wrong direction or whatever, I get frustrated. Ain’t nobody got time for that!
I’m sure you can identify times in your life when you were making decisions that wouldn’t be categorized as SMART. We’ve all been there. Nobody’s exempt from bad decisions. Some people fall into the trap of addiction (drugs, alcohol, pornography, food, relationships, etc.). Some people dig a whole of self-loathing (depression, shame, guilt, self-injury, etc.). Some people lock themselves up in their homes (isolation, detachment, bitterness, resentment, unforgiveness, etc.). Bad decision after bad decision after bad decision. Nobody grows up WANTING to do it, but we do grow up wanting to CONTROL it.
It’s my party and I’ll cry if I want to.
Bad decisions are often masked as GOOD plans. You have wants and needs and dreams and aspirations. You have things you want to do and places you want to see. You have goals you want to reach and things you want to have. How do we get them? We plan. We work. We struggle. We strive. We do what we gotta do to get what we wanna get. It just so happens that our plans (yes, yours and mines) aren’t always the BEST plans.
Here’s a good example taken from the book of John. Take a moment and read it.
After these things Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and in this way He showed Himself: Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together. Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We are going with you also.” They went out and immediately got into the boat, and that night they caught nothing.
John 21:1-3 NKJV
“I am going fishing.” Seems harmless enough, right? It doesn’t seem like it’s anything too out of the ordinary, especially when you consider they were fishermen by trade. But… was it what they were SUPPOSED to be doing? Was fishing part of the PLAN? And I’m not talking about PETER’S plan (because obviously it was), I’m talking about GOD’S plan for their lives.
There’s your plan and then there’s God’s plan. Your plan might be good, but God’s plans are ALWAYS greater. Your plan might not be all that bad, but God’s plans are ALWAYS good.
It’s my party and I’ll cry if I want to.
I’m not God, so I don’t know what His plans were for these guys, but I do know they went out fishing, all night long I might add, and caught NOTHING. They caught NOTHING! I don’t know how you’d feel, but if I’m out in a boat ALL NIGHT LONG and catch NOTHING, I’m probably going to be frustrated, might even be mad. Chances are I’m going to look at Peter and say, “You idiot. Why’d you come up with this idea?” I’ll fuss. I’ll whine. I’ll blame. But I won’t take responsibility for my own actions and willingness to follow along with the plan.
Maybe you’re in a rut right now. Maybe things just don’t seem to be going like you once imagined. Maybe you don’t have the job you always wanted or you do, but it’s not what you thought it would be. Maybe you’re running in circles. Maybe you’re not moving at all. Chances are you were following a plan; it just wasn’t GOD’S plan. It’s ok. His plans haven’t changed.
God let’s you make bad decisions, but He won’t leave you in them. He’s always there; always available to help you get back on track. His plans haven’t changed; you’ve just gone off course. It’s not too late.
It’s your party, stop crying and ask God for help.
Reflect:
- Do you have regrets from your past? Are there things you wish you could take back?
- Can you identify a time when your plans split off from God’s?
- What happens when you try and wrestle control of your life?
- Have you ever asked God to show you His plans for you life?
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