What God directs, He protects.
Blessings untold are waiting for you,
As God guides and directs the things that you do.
2. Trust in the Lord with your heart, I say,
You will hear His voice, "This is the way."
Desires from Him, they will come,
Your heart bears witness, this is the one.
3. Vision accomplished, desire achieved,
Results of a heart, willing to believe.
God's plans unfolding as a dream in the night
Your acceptance guarantees His power and might.
4. The struggle is over, the battle is done,
When you've waited in prayer, to hear from the son.
His voice is clear, the captain has spoken,
'Go forward now! - the enemy's power is broken!'
5. Rest - for you a way of life.
Gone are the days of worry and strife
You've come to the place of knowing His way,
God's plans are blessed, for you to believe and obey
Today, with this confession as a guide (it was actually shared as a poem or so, not as a confession but it became by confession), we will be talking on God's plan with the reminder that His plans are indeed blessed
For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord , thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
Jeremiah 29:11 KJV
Sometimes we are in doubt of the plans of God for us, but here is a reassurance from God. He is very sure of the plans He has for us, He knows definitely that they've not changed.
They are of Good and not evil. They are blessed and aimed towards a future filled with Hope
We all know that truly God's plans are blessed. We know our papa loves us so much. This is so easy to agree with when things are going well and visible in accordance with what we know about God's plans for us individually
But what happens when everything is not looking like the plan and it is repeatedly so.
The vision we've been given and our current realities are so much far apart.
We are even beginning to question if we are truly running with the right vision or we missed something along the line
you've just been diagnosed of this life threatening disease and it's changing your whole life
You got to work last week only to meet a dismissal letter
Your parents' health just went from 100-0. You might need to crowd fund to take care of them. Chances of survival are still slim
You've been searching for a job tirelessly, yet nothing
So much debt hanging on your neck but inside the plan that you've been told God has for you, you are the one lending to nations
Your friends have progressed in life/left you behind and it seems like everyone is deserting you
You and rejection mails have been 5 and 6 for a while
The partner you've been praying with for years just worked out on your relationship
For someone, the Lord has said do xyz. You've been so faithful to it but it looks like nothing is coming from it.
You wrote down the vision. You are sure you heard it clearly.
You've been running by it but things keep going wrong.
You take 1 step forward and it feels like a win only for something to happen and drag you 10 steps backwards
Any spiritually minded person sees you and immediately they tell you: you are such a great person. God's plans for you are amazing. He will use you so much for His glory
It's sweet to hear but you've heard it so many times, it is becoming tiring. For decades, messages like this have come but nothing has come out of it.
Truly, life has a way of throwing challenges, so much that we are trusting o but we are not really trusting.
We are "frustratedly trusting"
Don't know if anyone can picture this or understand what I mean
I can relate to these things.
I've been here a lot of times
I get really tired and I'm wondering, when exactly will this thing happen
Especially when it feels like I'm close to something and everything scatters. I look at the vision and I wonder again, did I miss anything?
Because at this point, local man is tired.
I don't know where you fall in all of these. I don't know what is going on in your life. But the Lord has sent me to you, He has sent me to me. He says His plans are blessed, they truly are, even with all of these plenty challenges.
I'm reminded of Joseph. At 17, he dreamt of becoming king. He was sure of the vision, so sure that He even told it to his brothers. It took 22 years for this dream to come to pass (His brothers coming to bow before him).
First, he had to be a slave then next a prisoner.
This was not in the outline he received.
All he saw was his family bowing before him.
I wonder if Joseph ever thought of his dream while in prison. How did it make him feel? How much of an irony that'd have been.
Some things happen to me and I'm just there like, God we didn't discuss this part. Is this one supposed to be part of the t & c too cos I'm tired.
God's plans are blessed
Let's look at the story of Daniel briefly. The King had gathered young men in the city to learn the language of the Chaldeans. Daniel and his friends were part of these young men.
(Daniel 1:17).
If we read the chapter fully, we see that God gave Daniel and his friends special ability that others learning did not have.
In the second year of the King's reign, he started having dreams.
None of the Chaldeans and wise men the king was training people to be like could tell him his dream or interpret.
But Daniel and his friends prayed to God who revealed to them.
This led to Daniel becoming the Chief Magi. He was to train all magis in the reading of stars, interpretations, dreams, vision etc since the wise men and Chaldeans were not up to the task
Daniel began a new "school" sort of for training magis (of course he'd have done it as God wished)
600 years before Christ but all of these was a setup towards the acknowledgement of Christ as king and the visitation of the magis. Magis trained in the ways Daniel had laid down would someday see a star in the sky and know exactly what it means.
They'd leave all and come in fulfillment of scripture to bow before the one born king.
Did Daniel know this? No!
Was it part of God's plan? Yes
We see that truly God's plans are blessed and even they span over time.
When God guides, He provides
What God directs, He protects.
Blessings untold are waiting for you,
As God guides and directs the things that you do.
When God guides, He provides
We see the story of Abraham. God asked him to satisfy his only son, Isaac. Abraham didn't question, not because he was not sad but he had been in God's plan for a while. He had walked in it and he understood that there were blessings in it no matter how absurd the instruction is. No matter what the next step took from him. He knew that regardless, God had a plan and whatever it was it'd be to his advantage.
Then Abraham noticed a ram whose horns were caught in a bush. So Abraham went and took the ram. He offered it, instead of his son, as a sacrifice to God. So Abraham gave that place a name, “The Lord Provides.” Even today people say, “On the mountain of the Lord, he will give us what we need.”
Genesis 22:13-14 ERV
The ram was not provided at the point where Abraham got the instruction. He was already on the move when the ram came.
He did not know who was bringing it before time. Abraham was not busy trying to figure it out. He went out with the instruction.
Also, I believe the ram had been there before Abraham got to the place.
He just did not see it. The bible says "Then Abraham noticed a ram.. "
I don't know what God has asked you to do and probably it is looking like there is no resources.
God has told you xyz but no provision to accomplish
Know this: On the mountain of the Lord (Inside the plan of the Lord), there will SURELY be provisions
The Lord will give all that you need, when you need it
(not one minute late)
When God directs, He protects.
We see that Elisha was following God's direction. Even the people benefited from the protection that came from following God's directions
But the man of God sent a message to the king of Israel. Elisha said, “Be careful! Don’t go by that place, because the Aramean soldiers are hiding there!” The king of Israel sent a message to his men at the place that the man of God warned him about. And the king of Israel saved quite a few men.
2 Kings 6:9-10 ERV
Because of the directions God gave Elisha, the king of Haram sent an army to surround and kill him.
But God protected Elisha still
Elisha’s servant got up early that morning. When he went outside, he saw an army with horses and chariots all around the city. The servant said to Elisha, “Oh, my master, what can we do?” Elisha said, “Don’t be afraid. The army that fights for us is larger than the army that fights for Aram.” Then Elisha prayed and said, “Lord, I ask you, open my servant’s eyes so that he can see.” The Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and the servant saw the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire. They were all around Elisha.
2 Kings 6:15-17 ERV
Sometimes, we are like these servants, crying : "Lord, what shall we do"
But the Lord is telling us to look around, we are protected
For the remaining days of this year, our eyes are opened to God's protection that is always around us.
Amen
Trust in the Lord with your heart, I say,
You will hear His voice, "This is the way."
Desires from Him, they will come,
Your heart bears witness, this is the one.
Like Abraham, put all your trust in God. Knowing that He will provide, that He will lead, guide and direct
Knowing that truly the vision is for an appointed time. Though it tarries, surely it will come to pass.
Though everything happening is not looking like the vision, trust that God's plans are truly blessed
March 2018, the Holy spirit showed me something.
I was sitting on a stool, no handle or place to rest my back.
The stool was placed at the edge of a cliff.
The Cliff was very high, like really high and tiny.
All around it, deep waters.
Then the Spirit told me to rest my back.
Me: on what?
He told me to lean backwards
On what?
I'm already so scared sitting on that cliff, now I should lean completely as if there was a chair I'm relaxing on?
I'm going to fall inside the deep waters, that was certain.
I couldn't even look down properly cos I was scared. Now I should lean.
Then the Spirit told me, that this is what it is to depend on God, trust in His word and know that His love will not let me fall inside that water waiting to swallow
This is what it means to trust.
You know that leaning is the end of you but you also know that the one you lean on will not allow such end
It is very difficult to allow ourselves fall back with hope that someone will come and hold us.
From personal experience, I've come to know our trusting in God is our last resort
Like we've tried other cards that didn't work and it's just the God option left. Just like the woman with the issue of blood, she had exhausted all resources before Jesus. 12 years of carrying that problem.
Sometimes, we prolong some phases inside of this blessed plan of God for our lives, because we refuse to trust completely.
Our realities, natural senses, situations etc tilt us to walk by sight.
But you see God's plan, as blessed as it is, human sight cannot catch a glimpse of the process..
It takes trusting the one that gave the plan
Ignore your reality
Ignore the doctor's report
Forget the economy and absence of "provision"
Leave yourself at the complete mercy of God.
It's sweet to talk about o but very difficult. I know this because the decision to trust is daily. Even I sometimes forget to.
I know I'm to trust God but a problem comes up and I'm worried. I'm springing into action trying to fix or work it out.
Hmmm. God's plans are blessed but you need to trust Him to work it out. And you will hear Him when you do. He will show you the way. You will be certain of the steps to take.
I will leave verse 3 & 4 for us and jump to the last.
This is the most beautiful part of this confession for me.
Rest - for you a way of life.
I changed the you on the paper at some point to "me".
When we learn to believe that truly the plans of God for us are blessed, that He will provide, protect and all we need do is trust, we experience peace.
We come to a place of rest.
Gone are the days of worry and strife
We are not worrying or struggling, not because there is nothing to worry about but because we are at the complete mercy of God.
The plan does not belong to me. If it looks like it is not working? The owner of the plan should do the worrying 😁
You've come to the place of knowing His way,
And when we stay here, we already have expo. It becomes easier. Struggles are no longer struggles. We are almost cruising through it all.
People will look at you and wonder how you have it all together but you know you don't have it all together, only God does.
God's plans are blessed, for you to believe and obey
Hmmmm..
Indeed, God has plans for you. God has plans for me.
And they are really blessed plans
Regardless of circumstances, please believe this. Never ever doubt it
Life will tell you otherwise o. Things will not make sense but don't ever doubt
God's plans are blessed, first for you to believe then obey the instructions He gives.
If you do not believe and obey, you can't walk with the plan talk less of enjoying the blessings from it.
I will like us to google William Cowper. This man had life deal with him seriously. He was heavily depressed. Nothing made sense to him. He had experience a whole lot of pain, a whole lot. Life had no meaning. He became a believer through John Newton (author of amazing Grace) and it was John who encouraged him to write poems to be Sung by the church.
God moves in mysterious ways was written by William Cowper. He didn't write this song when everything became rosy.
If we look at this hymn from the pain Cowper was going through, just maybe we will understand the hymn better.
(funny enough, my dad sent same hymn to me 2 days ago)
“God Moves in a Mysterious Way” by William Cowper
God moves in a mysterious way, his wonders to perform; he plants his footsteps in the sea, and rides upon the storm.
Deep in unfathomable mines, of never-failing skill; he fashions up his bright designs, and works his sovereign will.
Ye fearful saints fresh courage take, the clouds that you much dread, are big with mercy and will break in blessings on your head.
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, but trust him for his grace; behind a frowning providence, he hides a smiling face.
His purposes will ripen fast, unfolding every hour; the bud may have a bitter taste, but sweet will be the flower.
Blind unbelief is sure to err, and scan his work in vain; God is his own interpreter, and he will make it plain.
The verse 4 says to judge not the Lord by feeble sense
The Lord says, “My thoughts are not like yours. Your ways are not like mine. Just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my thoughts are higher than your thoughts.
Isaiah 55:8-9 ERV
Whatever is going on in your life, God's purposes will ripen very fast. Don't forget to trust God's plan and His wisdom to see it through.
God's plans are blessed. He is the interpreter of His plans and He will make it plain.
Let us Pray
Spirit of the Living God, we thank you for teaching us so much in such little time.
Lord, we thank you for your blessed plans concerning our lives.
We thank you because we know that despite all that might be going on, we are safe inside of your plans.
Help us to always knows this
Help us to trust in you be at your complete mercy.
Help us to follow your lead and rest in your promises.
Help is to never forget that truly we are inside of your blessed plan
Amen
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