It would be fair to say that for many of us, the beginning of 2010 has not gone according to plan.  There may be many individual reasons for this, but for millions of people living in the UK, parts of Europe, Asia and even North America, there was another, unexpected and unpredicted reason – the extreme weather.
Here in the UK the experts have been calling this a “once in a generation event”, with more snow and lower temperatures over a longer period of time than we have had for 30 years.
For some, here and elsewhere, this has just been an inconvenience.  For others however, it has severely disrupted their plans.  There have been major disruptions to transportation; many schools and businesses have had to close; and in some areas supplies of food and fuel have been seriously affected.
This severe weather has been totally beyond any human control, and the unexpected length of time that it has been with us has meant that the planning done by individuals, organisations and governments has not been able to match the circumstances.  For some people, this disruption to their plans may also have serious, longer term affects.
When Plans Fail …
During some recent news reports, interviews conducted with people who were affected by this weather showed the different reactions people had to their plans being thrown into disarray.  Some tried to find a positive side, while others expressed anger at having their plans disrupted, or real concern about how this was going to affect them in the long term.  I began to think about how we, as Christians, react when our plans are disrupted in some way.
Throughout our life, most of us make plans, or have expectations of what will happen in our lives.  Sometimes it is simply planning what we will be doing that day, the next week or next month.  Sometimes it may be that we have an idealised picture of what our life, job, marriage or relationship “should” be like, and we build up our expectations and plans accordingly.
Then, because we still live in a fallen world, corrupted by sin and ruled (for a time) by Satan (the Prince of this World), things do not go according to plan.  Perhaps, we are just late for an appointment, held up in traffic.  Perhaps a sudden illness or death in the family comes along; or we lose our job and our finances are thrown into turmoil.  Perhaps someone close to us lets us down badly, or just does not behave the way we feel they “should”.  Perhaps a relationship does not live up to what we always thought it “should” be.
How do we react?  Do we get angry, or sad, upset, depressed, confused, perhaps lashing out at those close to us?  Do we try and justify our anger by bringing up all the disappointments of the past and then falling into self-pity?  Or do we give the Lord Thanks for His faithfulness and love, and declare our faith in Him, standing on the promise of the Lord as recorded in Romans 8:28:
“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.”  (New International Version)
The Lord also brought to mind His Word as recorded in Proverbs 16:9:
“A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.” (New King James Version)
… or, as it is translated in the NIV Readers edition:
“In your heart you plan your life. But the LORD decides where your steps will take you.”
I thank God, that He is faithful to direct my steps, even when my plans would have taken me elsewhere.
These scriptures carry three important messages.
First, when we allow the Lord to take control, He will direct our steps, sometimes using circumstances to correct our plans, when we are not in line with His Will, or need further confirmation of which way we are to go.  This the Lord confirms in another Scripture from Proverbs:
“The steps of a [good] man are directed and established by the Lord when He delights in his way [and He busies Himself with his every step].”  (Psalms 37:23 Amplified Version).
Second, when it is the enemy Satan, or just the results of a fallen world that disrupt our plans, the Lord will give us the “steps” to overcome the situation, even when we do not know how it is possible.  (Remember Romans 8:28)
Finally, the Lord will determine where your steps, or actions and attitudes will take you – what result will come from them.  This is true even if we are fighting against His Will, and trying to act according to “our plan”.  Since we were created with free will, He will sometimes allow us to make the wrong choices, but He will also determine the result of those actions.  Why?  Because the Lord, as any good parent, wishes only the best for His Children, so He may allow us to go our own way, but the results of those actions will not be as we expect, but directed by the Lord to show us the folly of our disobedient ways.
This last one can sometimes be a hard lesson, but also carries a promise:
“Endure hardship as discipline; …  No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”  (Hebrews 12:7a, 1 NIV)
So, let’s set our hearts and minds to make 2010 a year of “Directed Steps”, standing in faith on the Lord’s wisdom and love for us, ready, if necessary, to set aside our plans, and allow our Father in Heaven to lead us wherever that may take us – even down paths we never expected.
If we do, we will find the ability in Him to meet every challenge, and find the peace and joy that comes only from abiding in Christ.  We will be freed from stress, depression, worry, fear and anger, because the Spirit the Lord has ALREADY given us will be free to operate in our lives, Amen.
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”  (2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV)It would be fair to say that for many of us, the beginning of 2010 has not gone according to plan. There may be many individual reasons for this, but for millions of people living in the UK, parts of Europe, Asia and even North America, there was another, unexpected and unpredicted reason – the extreme weather.

Here in the UK the experts have been calling this a “once in a generation event”, with more snow and lower temperatures over a longer period of time than we have had for 30 years.

For some, here and elsewhere, this has just been an inconvenience. For others however, it has severely disrupted their plans. There have been major disruptions to transportation; many schools and businesses have had to close; and in some areas supplies of food and fuel have been seriously affected.

This severe weather has been totally beyond any human control, and the unexpected length of time that it has been with us has meant that the planning done by individuals, organisations and governments has not been able to match the circumstances. For some people, this disruption to their plans may also have serious, longer term affects.

When Plans Fail …

During some recent news reports, interviews conducted with people who were affected by this weather showed the different reactions people had to their plans being thrown into disarray. Some tried to find a positive side, while others expressed anger at having their plans disrupted, or real concern about how this was going to affect them in the long term. I began to think about how we, as Christians, react when our plans are disrupted in some way.

Throughout our life, most of us make plans, or have expectations of what will happen in our lives. Sometimes it is simply planning what we will be doing that day, the next week or next month. Sometimes it may be that we have an idealised picture of what our life, job, marriage or relationship “should” be like, and we build up our expectations and plans accordingly.

Then, because we still live in a fallen world, corrupted by sin and ruled (for a time) by Satan (the Prince of this World), things do not go according to plan. Perhaps, we are just late for an appointment, held up in traffic. Perhaps a sudden illness or death in the family comes along; or we lose our job and our finances are thrown into turmoil. Perhaps someone close to us lets us down badly, or just does not behave the way we feel they “should”. Perhaps a relationship does not live up to what we always thought it “should” be.

How do we react? Do we get angry, or sad, upset, depressed, confused, perhaps lashing out at those close to us? Do we try and justify our anger by bringing up all the disappointments of the past and then falling into self-pity? Or do we give the Lord Thanks for His faithfulness and love, and declare our faith in Him, standing on the promise of the Lord as recorded in Romans 8:28:

“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.” (New International Version)

The Lord also brought to mind His Word as recorded in Proverbs 16:9:

“A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.” (New King James Version)

… or, as it is translated in the NIV Readers edition:

“In your heart you plan your life. But the LORD decides where your steps will take you.”

I thank God, that He is faithful to direct my steps, even when my plans would have taken me elsewhere.

These scriptures carry three important messages.

First, when we allow the Lord to take control, He will direct our steps, sometimes using circumstances to correct our plans, when we are not in line with His Will, or need further confirmation of which way we are to go. This the Lord confirms in another Scripture from Proverbs:

“The steps of a [good] man are directed and established by the Lord when He delights in his way [and He busies Himself with his every step].” (Psalms 37:23 Amplified Version).

Second, when it is the enemy Satan, or just the results of a fallen world that disrupt our plans, the Lord will give us the “steps” to overcome the situation, even when we do not know how it is possible. (Remember Romans 8:28)

Finally, the Lord will determine where your steps, or actions and attitudes will take you – what result will come from them. This is true even if we are fighting against His Will, and trying to act according to “our plan”. Since we were created with free will, He will sometimes allow us to make the wrong choices, but He will also determine the result of those actions. Why? Because the Lord, as any good parent, wishes only the best for His Children, so He may allow us to go our own way, but the results of those actions will not be as we expect, but directed by the Lord to show us the folly of our disobedient ways.

This last one can sometimes be a hard lesson, but also carries a promise:

“Endure hardship as discipline; … No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:7a, 1 NIV)

So, let’s set our hearts and minds to make 2010 a year of “Directed Steps”, standing in faith on the Lord’s wisdom and love for us, ready, if necessary, to set aside our plans, and allow our Father in Heaven to lead us wherever that may take us – even down paths we never expected.

If we do, we will find the ability in Him to meet every challenge, and find the peace and joy that comes only from abiding in Christ. We will be freed from stress, depression, worry, fear and anger, because the Spirit the Lord has ALREADY given us will be free to operate in our lives, Amen.

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” (2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV)