Ready:
"Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails."
-Proverbs 19:21
Set:
The NFL Draft is always a highly anticipated event. For Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn there was some uncertainty surrounding when his name would be called in the 2007 draft. Many experts felt he might go a low as 9th overall. But after he was chosen by the Cleveland Browns with the 22nd pick Quinn said, "I felt like the weight of the world was lifted off my shoulders. I had a point in my head where I didn't think I was going to fall any further, and it obviously exceeded that."
Making plans is part of life. . .and so is changing them. We often determine in our minds how we think life should go, but then something unexpected happens to seemingly ruin our plans. We don't get the scholarship offer we wanted, injury diminishes the career we desired, the promotion we hoped for doesn't come our way.
So what should we do when things don't go the way we want? It may seem unfair, and we may be tempted to whine and complain about it. But Oswald Chambers tells us to, "Leave everything to Him (God), and it will be gloriously and graciously uncertain how He will come in--but you can be certain that He will come" (My Utmost for His Highest, April 29). In other words, even though we don't know how the Lord will work in a situation we must have faith that He will.
May we continually surrender our plans to the Lord and trust that He will work things out for our best, even if it's not what we think is best for us.
Go:
1. As a competitor, what is one specific way that your plans have not worked out the way you wanted?
2. What is something positive that has come from this situation?
3. Is there something you are going through right now that isn't working out like you planned? What is it, and what should your attitude be in this situation?
Workout:
Proverbs 3:5-6
Nahum 1:7
John 14:1
Romans 15:13