What God Has Prepared

July 23

2 Chronicles 26-28

Psalm 83:9-12

Proverbs 18:19-21

I Corinthians 2

What God Has Prepared

“Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.”  I Corinthians 2:9 LSB

God has a plan for my life and for your life.  He loves us and knows what is best for us.  He created us and so He knows what will give us the most fulfilling, meaningful life possible.  We cannot even imagine the good plans He has prepared for us.  They are beyond our comprehension.  Jeremiah 29:11-13 says, “’For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares Yahweh, ‘plans for peace and not for calamity, to give you a future and a hope.  Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.  You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.’” LSB  I know this is a specific promise to Israel and not to us, but the principle can be applied to our lives as well.  Verse 11 is quoted often and can be found on t-shirts, mugs, etc. but many don’t bother reading the rest of the passage.  This is not a universal promise.  The passage clearly says that when we seek Him and search for Him with all our heart, then we will find Him.  When we call upon Him and pray to Him, He will listen to us.  When we do that we are putting ourselves in the place where we are willing to listen to Him and to do what He says.  These verses are not saying that God will go along with the plans we make for ourselves or that He is going to bless our plans.  They are clearly saying that He has a plan prepared for us and if we follow His plans, our lives will be blessed.  It doesn’t say that our lives will always be easy or that we will never have difficulty, but that we can trust that His plans are for our good.  Romans 8:28 assures us, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” LSB 

These verses imply that if we are going to follow God’s plan for our lives, we have to be in an intimate relationship with Him and be in daily communication with Him.  If we are seeking Him with all our heart, then we will be able to discern what He wants us to do.  We all know how easy it is to get distracted and start going down the wrong path.  I remember one time we went to a soccer tournament in Lexington.  On the way home I was talking on my phone and missed the turn off the interstate.  The next exit was 20 miles away and there was no other alternative route so I ended up driving 20 miles out of the way, 20 miles back and then getting on the right path.  We were already really tired and adding this time to our long drive was miserable.  How many times have we done this in life?  We get distracted and take a wrong turn or fail to take the right path and we end up way down the road before we even realize we are going the wrong way.  Then we have to spend extra time and effort to get back on the path we should have been on in the first place.  The only way to avoid that is to stay in close contact with the One who knows the best path to take.  He will lead us and guide through our days but we have to pay attention and put ourselves in the position to listen to His voice.