I am a planner. Have been every since I can remember. The other day I came across this piece of paper that had my 10 year plan all laid out. I was about 18 when I made this plan and I remember being so excited about it! This plan included my occupation, what my various job titles would be, how much money I would be making each year, where I would be living and more specifically, the exact neighborhood I would be living in. I even have a picture attached to this piece of paper of the kind of house I wanted to live in. So please believe me when I say, I am a planner. I wish I could tell you that all of those plans perfectly lined up with God’s plan for my life, but that would not be totally true.
One thing the Lord continues to show me is that I don’t have to stress myself out trying to plan every intricate detail of my life. He has shown me that I can fully rest in His ability to plan and orchestrate the details (major & minor) of my life…..perfectly. Genesis 6 is a perfect example of how great of a planner He is and how He is involved in each and every aspect of our lives. God didn’t just tell Noah to build the ark. He told him starting at verse 14,
“Make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. This is how you are to build it; The ark is to be 450 feet long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high. Make a roof for it and finish the ark to within 18 inches of the top. Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks”.
It amazes me how specific God was and after God told him exactly how to build the ark, He then told Noah the purpose of the ark, how Noah played a role in that purpose, who and what needed to be on the ark and the timing of when things were scheduled to happen. I mean, what was left that Noah needed to know? Absolutely nothing. Noah didn’t have to plan a thing. All he had to do was these 3 things:
1. Be a man of noble character – vs. 9. “Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time….”
2. Walk with God – vs. 9. “……..and he walked with God”.
3. Obey God by putting his faith to action – vs. 22. “Noah did everything just as God commanded him”.
Can you imagine if Noah would have started building the ark before receiving the specific instructions from God? If he had started planning how he was going to construct it and moved forward with his plans? I am convinced that Noah would have messed things up, just like we sometimes do. But he trusted and had complete confidence in God. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that absolutely no planning is ever required on our part, but what I am saying is, our planning should always be precipitated by seeking God FIRST on His direction and His plan for our lives BEFORE we start planning and especially BEFORE decisions are made.
God is intentional and precise. His knowledge is infinite. His law is perfect. His precepts are right. His commands are radiant and His ordinances are sure and altogether righteous – Psalms 19:7-9. He is trustworthy. He is wisdom. He is all knowing. He is the God of Planning! Trust Him.
I pray that you all are having a great week and we will see you here tomorrow…same time and same place:)
Blessings,
Antrenette
