How to Trust That God Has a Plan For Your Life
When it comes to trusting that God has a plan for our lives, many of us hesitate. We may be unsure of what that plan is, or we may not believe that there is one at all. But the truth is, God does have a plan for each and every one of us, and it’s important to learn to trust in Him and not on our own understanding.
Because God is the creator of the universe and all things, He has a plan and purpose for good works in our lives.
He knows exactly what will happen to us in the future, so why wouldn’t His plans be perfect? We can trust that whatever happens, God will use it for good according to the purpose of His will.
In Jeremiah 29:11, we read “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.”
Later in the verse, God promises that when we trust Him, He will accomplish all of this for us.
In the Christian faith, we believe that God is perfect and all-knowing. As Psalm 139:1-4 states “O Lord, you have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.”
God is all-knowing and He gives good gifts to His children. He knows everything about us – even before we were born!
And as such, He knows the future. Because of this, we can trust that His plans for us are perfect even though life may bring unexpected turns.
What Does God Say About Trusting His Plan?
God’s Word instructs us to trust Him with our whole heart. Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths”.
Psalm 37:4-4 says, “Trust in the Lord and do what is good; dwell in the land and live securely. Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires”.
God wants us to trust Him with our whole heart. That means that we need to trust Him in every way, at all times.
When we trust God with our whole heart, that means that we are not relying on other people or things to make us happy. It also means that we take delight in Him and look to Him for our needs.
We can trust God with our whole heart because He is good and does good things for us all the time. As Psalm 145:9 says, “The Lord is good to all; He has compassion on all He has made.”
He is a good, good Father!
Trusting God In Difficult Times
When things get difficult, you might feel like giving up. But God has promised that He will never leave us or forsake us. And because of this, you can be confident that the difficulties in your life are not beyond His control.
God has a perfect plan for your life, and He intends to use tough times for his glory.
Here are 3 ways that God wants to use those difficulties for good:
To Show His Strength Through Our Weakness
When we go through difficult times, we realize just how much we need God every single day. Because of this, our trust in Him deepens as He sustains us and helps us bear the heavy burdens that we face.
As we are being changed to look more like the image of His son Jesus, He is refining us like fire refines gold. But how do we trust the plans of the Lord? We start by being in His Word every day.
Scripture tells us His ways are higher than ours, and His thoughts are not our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-9). We find His thoughts about us and our situation by going to the Bible.
God Gives Us The Opportunity To Be More Like Him
When He allows these difficulties in our lives, it becomes easy to let self-pride take over and blame God for our troubles.
But in reality, these difficulties provide us with an opportunity to become more like Him, to love others unconditionally, and to show the character of Christ through our lives.
The simple truth is that every day we have a chance to let others see Jesus in us. Let’s not miss the opportunity for Him to use us and represent Him to others in this broken world.
To Bring Glory To God
When times get tough, it’s easy to slip back into our old ways. Our human nature wants to run for the hills. Trust me, you are not alone in this.
It doesn’t matter how long you have walked with Jesus but as followers of Christ, we are called to be different. Instead, let your struggles be the motivation for you to cling to God all the more.
Let your trust in Him grow stronger as you face difficulties, knowing that you need Him every single day. Ultimately His plan will prevail and He will be glorified.
Why Is It Important To Trust God’s Plan?
1. He Is Trustworthy
The Lord is trustworthy and loving. He knew you before the foundation of the world.
Psalm 91:14-16, states “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”
As we trust in Him, we can be sure that He will protect us. God knows everything about our lives and what we go through, so why would He allow harmful things to happen to those whom He loves? As such, we can trust that God will rescue us from any trouble we find ourselves in.
2. His Plan For You Is Perfect
God’s plan isn’t always easy to understand – and that’s okay. As we trust God’s will, we can be sure that whatever He does is perfect and for our good.
God’s plan won’t always unfold perfectly according to the way we think it should or in our desired timing, but it will happen in His own time – just as long as we continue to put our faith and trust in Him.
Sometimes the things that don’t always feel comfortable may very well be His plan for you at that time. Remember, above everything else, He wants us to be more like Jesus.
This isn’t always easy to submit to, but you will come out stronger in your faith and you will grow in your relationship with Him.
3. He Makes All Things Beautiful In His Time
As there are mysteries to life that God keeps for His own, we cannot always know what will happen in the future.
However, no matter what happens or how difficult it may seem, we can trust that God will make everything beautiful in its time. Even when the wait seems long, He is working behind the scenes and sees every detail of your life. He never stops working!
4. He Has Never Failed
It doesn’t matter what you’ve been through, God has never failed us. And He won’t ever fail us. Of course, this doesn’t mean that He makes everything in our lives easy – but in the end, because of Him, we can be sure that all things will work out for good in our lives (Romans 8:28).
5. His Grace Is Sufficient
No matter what mistakes you’ve made in the past, He is ready to forgive them all! Isn’t that good news? His grace and mercy know no boundaries; it’s always available for you.
So tell Him today that you need his forgiveness! The former things that you’ve done and bad decisions of your past can no longer separate you from Christ Jesus and His great love.
6. He Will Never Leave You, God’s presence is with you
No matter how deep the valley is, God will never leave you; He will be right beside you to strengthen you and comfort you until it’s over.
Even when you can’t feel His presence, he is there amidst it all, loving you and holding you up every step of the way. One of my favorite Bible verses is found in Psalm 91 that says, “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty”. His covering and protection is always with us.
7. He Gives Us A Hope And A Future
He is working in us to make us more like Him, so that we can experience His kingdom in the world today. He gives us a hope for what is to come, and He gives us a future with himself.
The best part of this is that it’s free! You see, God’s promises can be trusted, He will never let us down, even in the hard times. The fact of the matter is, is that He knows the desires of your heart, and God’s timing is perfect.
8. He Is Not The Author Of Confusion
God is not the author of confusion. As 1 Corinthians 14:33 states “For God is not a God of confusion but of peace.”
As such, we can trust that despite unexpected twists and turns in our life, He will provide us with His peace. Whether His plan involves trials and tribulations or blessings, He is still working – for our good and His glory as part of His plan. That is God’s character.
We were not made with infinite wisdom and foresight – which means we can trust that God’s plan is better than any idea we could come up with.
9. He Loves You
God’s love for you is immeasurable. He desires to have a deeper relationship with you. In the same way a loving father wants to be involved in their child’s life, God desires to have a close relationship with all His children.
His steadfast love is never ending and even though it is hard at times, we can give Him complete control of our lives.
As John 14:21-24 states “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.”
The promise of this verse is that if we trust in God, He will reveal Himself to us, and we will learn to love Him in return.
This also means that He is always there for us – even when we don’t see Him or feel His presence. This is because of the wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit.
Let God plan your life and let go of trying to control the future.
Trust God with your whole heart. God’s purpose for your life will come to pass.
Trust Him in every way, at all times. Remember dear friend, that what He has promised He will do. And remember that you can count on His plans being good and prosperous.
Blessings!
Karen
