This is a repost and since writing we have taken our hoilday to America/Canada. It was an amazing time for which I am very grateful I took the time to plan, rather than merely talking about it. I encourage you to also make some plans.
I’m in the middle of planning our next family holiday. Planning is an interesting process because it makes us think and articulate what we really want. We can talk around and around in circles about a subject, but it’s only when we have to put our plans down on paper and prepare to take action that real decisions have to be made and decisions can be difficult.
However even though making plans can be difficult, there are significant benefits when we choose to sit down, get quiet and make plans.
Making plans makes us revisit our dreams, and the things that so often get pushed into the background. Our responsibilities and daily life can silence what we truly desire and dream about, but when we make plans we are forced to look beyond the everyday to what we really want.
Making plans encourages us to search our hearts and to be honest with others and ourselves. We are more inclined to prioritise what is really important to us when making plans and not just seek to take the easiest route or course of least resistance.
Making plans makes us realise that we need wisdom and clarity on what to do, and where to go next. Otherwise we simply become a victim of our schedule and life passes us by, rather than taking definite steps in a planned direction to get to where we really want to go.
Making plans often motivates us to seek higher revelation (preferably the God kind), as we recognise we need direction and guidance. In planning we realise that we don’t always know the best thing to do, and we actually would benefit from God’s help and for Him to speak to us and to give us direction.
Making plans lifts our perspectives to one where we actively seek “to do the things that matter,” rather than just coasting along letting life simply happen around us. Plans give us direction, vision, clarity, and something to get out of bed in the morning for. Planning leads to goal setting and strategizing, which creates an energy and momentum in our lives. It helps us to have purpose, and we are less likely to get caught up in negative situations, and relationships. Plans help us to know where we are going, the steps to take and the reasons for it all.
Today, are you making plans and if so, who’s helping you? Are you making plans in your own wisdom and ability, or have you asked God for His wisdom and knowledge of what is the best course of action, and what His plan is. He actually wants to surpass any plan we may have, and to make “the plan” even better. The bible says, “God will do superabundantly more than all that we dare ask or think [infinitely beyond our greatest prayers, hopes, or dreams], according to His power that is at work within us, (Ephesians 3:20).
Don’t just let life happen around you; get involved and make some plans. But remember to seek God and include Him in the process, because He knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows the dreams and desires of our hearts, the end from the beginning and everything in between. He’ll direct us in the right way to go, how to avoid danger and disaster, and will bless everything we put our hands and hearts to.
Let God direct you in your plans today, and see what He will do in, and through you.
Jesus said, “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give you a rich and satisfying life. “ (John 10:10 NLT)
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”(Jeremiah 29:11)
“We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps.” (Proverbs 16:9 NLT)
Prayer: Lord thankyou for helping me to make plans, and that in them you will guide and direct my steps. Help me to be honest and true to who I am, and to seek after the life you created me to live. In Jesus name Amen.