This week, Good Morning Girls kicked off their summer reading program which gets women all of the world into God's word daily. Next week we also begin reading through the WONDERFUL book, "Ministry of Motherhood" by Sally Clarkson. Why do I tell you this? Well, it's not too late to jump in and join us, for starters! There is still room for you so head on over to Good Morning Girls and join an accountability group and meet some wonderful women! I have and am enjoying getting to know these women better as we journey this road together.
My other reason for bringing this up is to share with you what God has shared with me today. With my propensity to plan, it's easy to get ahead of God. It's easy to have my week, month, year all planned out. Logically, I KNOW that my plans won't all come to be, yet, I gain comfort from planning it anyway. Strange, huh? A good clue as to where I place my trust and faith - not His plans but my own. Ugh.
In Matthew 6:33 we read, "and He will give you all you need from day to day if you live for Him and make the kingdom of God your primary concern." This is a powerful IF/THEN statement that spoke to me this morning. My focus needs to be wholeheartedly, first and foremost, on Him and His ways. Yet, that is difficult when my mind is wandering to next week's dinner with friends or the camping trip in a month or what my kids will learn next school year. While those things aren't "bad" to focus on and plan out, they occupy too much of my focus in the day to day that I run the risk of MISSING today because I'm not HERE!
Now, this seems like such a simple "DUH, Sheri" moment. Perhaps this isn't a struggle for you but, boy, did I need to be reminded of this! My faith and trust shouldn't lie in MY plans but in the One that holds my future. This verse is SO clear - It is day to day that God provides all of my needs WHEN I'm focused on Him and His ways. I mean, The One who created all things and was there in the beginning and knows the end, He, even He, provides not a month's worth of needs, not a week's worth but day to day. If the Creator of the universe can focus on the day to day, surely I can take captive my thoughts and focus and bring them down to TODAY. In doing so, I become a better wife and mom because my focus is on my time with them - today.
It's easy for us to focus on the good part of this verse (He will provide ALL our needs day to day...) yet this verse requires action from us. He promises to take care of ALL of our needs, day to day, IF (yes, this is where you and I come in) I live for Him and make His ways my "primary concern". For me, this action is taking my thoughts and focus captive and behaving in a way that shows my faith and trust in Him - not my plans. For the reality is, I can make all the plans in the world and it gives me warm fuzzies to do so BUT I'm not in charge. I'm not in control of those plans or the REAL plans that He has for me. I need to lessen my faith in my own way and let His way in. "Let go and Let God" as the saying goes. That is what I needed to hear today.
I don't think making plan is 'bad', it is how tightly we grip those plans that is a problem. It is when we put our faith and trust in the plans and not the One who REALLY is in charge.
Let go of whatever you are holding onto today and Let God. Let God move in your life. Let God lay a better plan than you could ever have imagined.
This post is linked up to Women in the Word Wednesdays over at GoodMorningGirls
Great post, Sheri. You are so right, it is so easy to get caught up in the planning that we forget to look around us now. I wonder if it is just a homeschool mum thing? ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Bek! I appreciate your comments! I think it is definitely common in the homeschooling crowd but I didn't always homeschool and still got caught up in planning, planning, planning.. I think I enjoy the process of planning. A LOT. and have to guard my heart against the comfort and satisfaction that can bring, if I let it!
ReplyDelete