Episode 39

TODAY’S READING:

Many are the plans in a person’s heart,

but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.

Proverbs 19:21

 

Do you know what has always fascinated me? Those videos of a person perfectly setting the table, and then once the table is fully set with a lit candle and everything, that same person swiftly rips the table cloth from under all of the plates and silverware, yet nothing moves. The candle doesn’t fall, and the light stays shinning.

 

This is the picture I want to paint for us this morning. 

 

Our plans are so important. The dreams we have in our hearts are necessary. They were planted there by God himself. He is the very person I am talking about. Setting the table. Setting the scene for your life. Asking you to walk through new doors every single day – puts fork down. Asking you to work hard on the life he wants you to live – puts the knife down. Asks you to have faith in him – light the figurative candle*. 

 

Like Manny spoke about yesterday, diligence leads to abundance. We know this. We understand things take time, and we need to nurture our seeds. We need to stop asking for overnight success because hasty projects lead to poverty, and in our case, poor quality work. 

 

But today, I wanted us to take our diligence and work ethic and put it to the test while also remembering to be flexible. You see, God’s plan might be to set the table of dreams and then rip the very table cloth from right underneath you without ever dimming the light that was set. 

 

Take this podcast, for example. I was working DILIGENTLY on my baking business. I was working on my dreams of opening a bakery. While I worked diligently, I fell behind on Devotional time. Then and only then did I realize how important it was to carve 5 minutes out of my mornings for Him. The Podcast was planted in my heart, and here I am today. I never in my wildest dreams imagined I would launch a podcast, but God ripped the rug from underneath me, and I didn’t fall, not because of my doing but because God knows exactly how to rip the rug from underneath you without dimming the light from inside. Most people would have been devastated by the thought of pivoting from their dreams, but I was committed to His dreams for my life. This verse says God’s plans will always prevail, so I encourage you to challenge yourself to be okay with that.

 

So where ever you find yourself today. Continue working; continue to water that seed. But be flexible and be ready for if/when God comes and rips the rug from underneath you. He’s swift and really talented so that you won’t fall, I promise. 

 

PRAYER

Jesus, we want your plans for our lives, not ours. We know they are better than our wildest imagination. So guide us, father. Show us what your dreams for us are. Give us the faith the see your hands at work and let us lean onto you. We honor you every day. In your Holy name, we pray, Amen!