Plans

Woody Allen is credited with saying, “If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.”  We could add to it, “If you want to hear him laugh even louder, tell him how much you know.  It’s amusing to see people ardently making lists, organizing their lives, and orchestrating, they think, the world around them.  Plans, plans and more plans, we humans love to make plans.  God designed us to pursue what we love, but the fact is, the only plan of action, that will be efficacious, is the one we allow God to refine.  Sure, we can devise great-sounding outlines, but if they go against what God has established, they will fall as flat as a shaken soufflé. How many times have you launched a foolproof scheme, only to have it fail?  Speaking for myself, too many to count.  Our designs may sound good in theory, but application is the true test. Why is it so difficult for us to consult with a higher authority?  I think it’s because, since childhood, we’ve been taught to be self-reliant, and asking others for advice might be construed as an admission of weakness.  In actuality, when we seek guidance, from a reliable source, it proves that we sincerely want our plans to succeed, because we are aware of our limitations.  When we call on God for assistance, he doesn’t just take over, instead he enhances our abilities, by empowering them with his Holy Spirit. Even the poet Robert Burns knew that the plans of mice and men, often go awry. Who would want to continue in futile pursuit of wimpiness, when His super power is available?  Not me!! “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11.  That, my friends, is a promise…believe it!!