My Dear Friend, I'm Calling You Out

My dear friend.. 

It's good to write to you again. I'm sorry it's been a long while since I took the time to write this letter. Truly, it's not you.. it's me. In the past six months I graduated college, married the love of my life, moved into our first home, started graduate school, increased my hours at work, and have been trying to figure out the balance of marriage, school, and work.

Safe to say the balance has not yet been figured out.
I'm beginning to see it will always be a work in progress.

But enough about me. I'm here for you.

And by here for you, I mean I have some things I want to say to you that you won't like but you need to hear. We've been talking a lot about our plans for the future, what we want, what we think will happen, what we just know will happen. And I've been convicted that I haven't said this enough. So

I'm here to call you out. In love. And truth. 

But there are some things we need to talk about. 

If you felt your conscious just twinge in nervousness at that statement, then it's probably something you need to hear too. 

Here we go with controversial statement #1:

You need to accept that the Lord's plans for you are probably not your plans for you.

(In fact, I can safely say that like 99.5% of the time they're not.
Like maybe they're kinda close, but still probably not.)

Gasp WHAT??

I know, I know.
Right now in your head, you are rationalizing why your very well thought out, 5 to 10 year plan is in fact the plan the Lord has for you.

I mean clearly it's perfect. It will take you to ultimate comfort or success or power or money, or dare I say it, glory/recognition, or perhaps a combination of those things.

And then..... something happens. 
You lose your job. You don't get into the graduate program. The person you swore you would marry breaks up with you. You make extremely detailed post-college plans for the ideal job at the ideal place, and they are not turning out how you think they should be. Things, your PLAN, is not what you thought it would be.

What then?

That brings us to controversial statement #2:

You need to accept that the plans the Lord has for you are going to be better than your plans.

Again, you're probably rationalizing how there is no way this could be true. How could the Lord's plans ever be better than what I have in mind? Does He not realize that I have got this all figured out?

What could possibly be better?

Ah friend. If you only knew.
If you only knew what He knew, if you could even grasp how infinite His knowledge is, how powerful His ways are,
how incredibly detailed He has perfectly planned out
every, little, thing.

But, let me clarify, by better do I mean that they will be easier and provide more comfort/power/success? 
No. Not guaranteed anywhere in the Bible.

Does He promise He will care for His people like He cares for the birds?
Yes. Matthew 5:25-27 tells us that.
Does that mean He will always provide in the ways WE think He should provide for us?
No.

But wouldn't you much have the One who created the oceans, who formed the stars into being, who knows the number of hairs on your head, who rules over the world and yet listens to our cries, wouldn't you much rather have Him in control over your life?

This is God speaking to Job, (I recommend you read the whole book of Job)

"Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me if you have understanding. Who determined it's measurements-- surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? On what were its bases sunk, or who laid is cornerstone, when all the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? Or who shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb, when I made clouds its garnet and thick darkness its swaddling band, and prescribed limits for it and set bars and doors, and said "Thus far shall you come, and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stayed?" Job 38:4-11

I wasn't there when the foundations of the earth were laid, and I did not create the clouds or set limits to darkness.
But He was, and He did.

The Lord may place you somewhere, or in a situation, that you do not think you should be. It may be the utter opposite of what you planned. It may be somewhere you do not understand why in the world you could ever be placed there.

But, you still need to trust that if He has placed you there, you are supposed to be there.

And this leads to my final controversial statement, #3:

You are still called to glorify the Lord even when His plans aren't your plans. 

Perhaps you are currently in a position where you feel like there is no possible way you can glorify the Lord in your work. You are doing little, mundane tasks, every day.

Perhaps this is a position where you are checking people into their appointments. Perhaps you are making a powerpoint for a presentation that you will not receive any credit for. Perhaps you are staying at home with your kids with little interaction from the outside world.

You glorifying the Lord by cutting out 200 name tags with a cheerful spirit and a thankful heart to the Lord for your job will seem a lot smaller than glorifying the Lord by sharing your testimony with 10,000 people at a Christian conference. 

But is the Lord still glorified in that small task? 
Yes. 

I've spent the semester studying 1, 2 and 3 John with a group of girls.

John is writing to this dear friend of his, Gaius, and he says

"Beloved, it is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for these brothers, strangers as they are, who testified to your love before the church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God. For they have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing from the gentiles. Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be fellow workers for the truth." 3 John 5-8

Gaius is not the missionary going out to preach the gospel. He's not getting the credit or glory for that.
Instead, he is financially supporting their mission work.
He is welcoming them into his home and showing incredible hospitality.

He is continuing to glorify the Lord in very small ways, not expecting to get any of the praise, but yet, he is a fellow worker of the truth.

So my friend, the Lord's plans for you may not be what you had in mind.
You may be somewhere you don't want to be.
Perhaps you can't begin to understand why the Lord is making you patiently wait to see what is next.

Be reminded today that He cares for His people. 
Be reminded that He is in control, and knows much more than you can begin to fathom knowing. 

And be reminded that you are still to be a fellow worker of the truth in everything you do. 
No excuses.

Love,

Alana 


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