In our heads we may know that God has a plan for our life – but do we really believe it? We all go through periods of time where we doubt God has a plan, or what his plan is, or is his plan even really good? Learning to trust God’s plan isn’t easy but it’s essential if we want to walk through every circumstance with a peace that surpasses all understanding.
God didn’t create us, craft us, send his son to die for us, to then leave us to figure things out by ourselves – in fact it’s the complete opposite.
“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
God has a good and perfect plan and purpose for each of our lives – he calls us his children and we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28).
Does that mean that we will never struggle? Does that mean that it will all be plain sailing if we follow his plans? No, not at all. In fact, suffering can be a part of the journey to our ultimate purpose. But God does promise to be with us through it all and ultimately his plans are good because he loves us.
So how do we learn to trust his plans over ours?
Whether you are looking for confirmation over a specific plan in your life, or just generally trusting that God’s plan will reveal itself at the right time, keep reading for 5 ways to learn to trust in God’s plans over our own.
1. Get to know the author
When looking for advice on a decision, we don’t go to a stranger, we turn to those people around our life that we know best, that we trust to have our backs – to have our best intentions in mind. It’s impossible to trust someone that we don’t know with our futures. So why would we think it would be any different with God?
If we want to trust God’s plans, we have to get to know the author of those plans.
- We need to absorb ourselves in his word, getting to know him and his intentions towards us.
- We need to spend time in prayer, learning to hear his still small voice as it whispers of his enormous love for us.
- We need to encounter him for ourselves, spending time in his presence and allowing his Holy Spirit to speak directly to our hearts.
2. Focus on the journey (not the destination)
God’s ultimate plan for us is more about our transformation than anything else. The destination is secondary. He’s more interested in our character than our calling, and so we should be too.
“Don’t copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” – Romans 12:2
Christianity, being a Jesus follower, is a transformational process. At salvation, we are rescued from an eternity without God. It is by grace, not works we are saved. But, the result of salvation is that we draw closer to God and, as we do, we no longer live a life apart from God, but we start to learn to live a life that honours and pleases him, producing every kind of good fruit, growing as we learn to know God better and better (Colossians 1:10).
“This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life has gone; a new life has begun!” – 2 Corinthians 5:17
When we have made the commitment to become a Christian and spend our lives pursuing his plan instead of our own, we are a new creation. Our old lives – our old selves – have gone and a new life begins. We are giving God the permission to craft us, to mould us, to smooth out our rough edges, and form us into something new. We all have areas in our lives that we both want and need to change: damaging habits, dangerous addictions, unholy language, the way we speak to people, negativity. But the only way that is going to change is when we have a transformation of heart and start to think in a new way.
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:2
When we change on the inside, it manifests itself on the outside. When we become a Christian, this is the beginning of that change of heart. God is the potter, we are the clay (Isaiah 64:8). When we invite God into our lives, he doesn’t just toss us aside and start again, just as when a potter moulds a piece of clay, the material, the clay, remains essentially the same. Although the edges are smoothed out, although the appearance of that piece of clay is entirely different from where it began, the nature of the raw material is unchanged.
He isn’t asking us to change our personality, the essence of who we are. Why would he? He’s the creator and he didn’t make a mistake when he created you. God doesn’t make mistakes.
Our journey with God begins with us surrendering ourselves completely to his will, handing everything we are and have over to him (John 30:30). But then He begins to remove the veil, restoring us, the real us, back to who we are created to be. He gives us back our true selves.
“So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.” – 2 Corinthians 3:18
The more of God’s we become, the more ourselves we become, in his image he created us. This is the journey we start when we say yes to Jesus, a daily choice between what is good and yielding what is damaging, yearning for more of God and relinquishing what isn’t His, pursuing His plans and, where it doesn’t match up, giving up our own. It’s important to remember that although on the surface it sometimes appears that there is a lot to be lost, God’s desire for us is always good. His benefits far outweigh our own loss.
God is in the business of setting us free and he invites us into this process of change. Transformation is a process. God is a God of process. And he has his eye on eternity. Trust his timing, we will arrive when we are ready.
“So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honour.” – 1 Peter 5:6
3. Lean on His strength
Life is messy, full of ups and downs. Unexpected news, surprise circumstances, curve-ball revelations, good and bad, can leave us feeling stunned and off-balance, and if we’re not careful we can find life (and our faith) begin to unravel.
But no one said life was going to be easy (or if they did they were wrong). God didn’t promise us ‘easy’, the moment we turn to him. We don’t become a Christian and just suddenly have everything figured out. It isn’t suddenly all smiles, and sunshine, and rainbows, and nothing bad can ever happen.
In fact, Jesus guaranteed the very opposite. In John 16:33 Jesus says, “In this world you will have trouble” (emphasis added).
He doesn’t promise we will never have problems. He doesn’t promise that we will never face difficulties, or hardships, or pain, or suffering. He doesn’t promise that every person we love will love us back. He doesn’t guarantee that we will never experience loss, or failure, or disappointment. He never said that things would always go our way, that we would always know what to do, or that our path would be bump free, smooth and well-lit.
He told us that the way to life is hard, troubles will come, and we can even sometimes find ourselves walking through the valley of the shadow of death. Being a Christian doesn’t change the fact that we still live in a broken world, full of broken people, and the consequences of sin. But there is hope.
“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” – John 16:33
It is through His strength, not ours, that we are able to face whatever challenges life throws our way. Despite our unworthiness, He promises to be with us through everything because He loves us. He promises that no matter what we face, no matter what fear may cloud our judgement, no matter how far we wander from his embrace, we will never be alone. He promises to be always by our side, standing with us, fighting for us, carrying us when it feels like we can no longer stand. In every season, in every area of brokenness, He promises to bring us hope where there’s despair, strength where we are weak, and truth where we are deceived.
“For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.” – Philippians 4:13
Nothing is too hard for God. It’s easy to let disappointment set in when your expectations don’t match up with reality. It’s easy to question where God is in the middle of such chaos. But our hope in God isn’t based on our outward circumstance. His promises are forever yes and amen, regardless of our present reality. This means that when He says something is true, we can wait in eager expectation knowing it will be reality. The promises of God will never fail and are an anchor for our souls in the middle of whatever storm is raging.
“Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God.”” – Mark 10:27
4. Expect suffering and pain
This last 18 months has been incredibly hard for me and my family. I’ve been angry at God, confused about why we have been through tough times, frustrated that God has seemed so distant when we needed him the most.
But, it’s often through the most difficult seasons in our life that we see the most fruit. It is when every branch that does not bear fruit is cut away and the branches that do bear fruit are pruned that a plant will be most fruitful (John 15:2).
“Every branch in me that does not produce fruit he removes, and he prunes every branch that produces fruit so that it will produce more fruit. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I in you. Just as a branch is unable to produce fruit by itself unless it remains on the vine, neither can you unless you remain in me.” – John 15:2-4
Cutting and pruning are not particularly pleasant processes. While God is disciplining and refining us it can be uncomfortable or even downright painful at times. He even prunes in the areas we are producing fruit! That’s why it’s called refiners fire (1 Peter 1:7).
But suffering has purpose. Through it we grow to become the very best version of ourselves we can be. It’s through experiencing God’s faithfulness first hand, through the trials and difficulties of life, that our trust increases. Perseverance makes us mature in our faith.
“Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.” – James 1:2-4
In the particularly painful seasons, although we may not understand why, we can know that God is always with us, always for us and using it to help us grow. It is through the testing of our faith, and our endurance through the trial, that we come to know God more fully.
I know that through the difficult season I have been through with my family, God has used it to help me to re-evaluate and redefine some of the things in my life: my priorities, my theology, my preferences. And he continues to use it to lead me to spend time asking the big questions, resting in his presence, and letting him minister to me as he cuts away those things that are unimportant, and prunes those things that are, ensuring they will be more fruitful in seasons to come.
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” – Isaiah 43:2
5. Realise it’s not about you
Trusting God’s plan comes from realising it’s not about us – ultimately we are just a small part of God’s overall story – and his plans may or may not align with our own.
“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord. “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” – Isaiah 55:8-9
Trusting in God’s plans over our own is about realising that we get to play a role in the greatest story ever told – the story of God’s rescue plan for humanity. But, although the purpose of our life is bigger than just us, Jesus reminds us that we are not disposable cogs in a machine – God still cares for us intimately.
“What is the price of two sparrows—one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows” – Matthew 10:29-31
So often our fears when it comes to trusting in God’s plans are rooted in not knowing what the future holds and what will become of us. God tells us not to be afraid of being alone, of being too weak, of not being enough, of not being heard, of not having enough, or even of what is to come (Psalm 56:11). The key to overcoming fear is total and complete trust in God. It is turning to God even in the darkest times and trusting Him to make things right. This trust comes from knowing God and knowing that He is good. The bible speaks of so many truths of God’s goodness:
God is our hiding place. He protects us from trouble and surround us with songs of deliverance. (Psalm 32:7). He rescues us from our enemies, so that we might serve him without fear (Luke 1:74). He formed us in our mother’s womb and set us apart before we were even born (Jeremiah 1:5). He chose us even before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4) and we have been born again into his family “through the living and enduring word of God” (1 Peter 1:23). In Christ Jesus we have all been made children of God through faith (Galatians 3:26-27). God sees the full picture, the whole story from start to finish. But we see only part.
“Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.” – 1 Corinthians 13:12Practice trusting in God. It gets easier to trust him with the big things when we learn to trust him with the little things. His faithfulness never ends. When we begin to trust him, he will come through.
Photo by berenice martinez on Unsplash
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