What Does God's Plan for Your Life Look Like?

Jeremiah 29:11
"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."

God does have a plan for you.  He has a plan for all of us.  None of us are mistakes.  He doesn't make mistakes.  How can you tell what it is?  Sometimes the plan is readily clear.  As humans we tend to get in the way and try to do things our own way once we get a glimpse of an idea.  Scripture clearly tells us to Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not unto your own understanding of things.  In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path." (Proverbs 3:5)  It's just so hard to trust and try not to do something our own way.  One really good biblical example of God's plan for a life is the life of Moses.  He was born during a time when the Hebrew population was experiencing a rapid growth rate and this data was making the Egyptian Pharaoh uncomfortable.  The Jewish people had come to Egypt under the leadership of Joseph, son of Jacob during the time of famine.  At that time they were welcome and protected by Joseph.  When Joseph died he prophesied that God would lead his people to the promised land.  Some time later, a new king who had no knowledge of Joseph and no care or concern for the people of Jacob, decided that the people had to be contained and he would do that by enslaving the people and by having the new born male babies killed.  Moses was born to a family who trusted God and the wheels were set in motion.  His mother placed him in a water proof basket hidden among the reeds and his big sister kept watch over him until he was seen by a princess in the pharaoh's palace.  She immediately took him and claimed him as her own.  She told one of her maidservants to find a nanny for him, and the woman she found was his own mother.  Now Moses would be safe and would be raised in a palace.  He grew up as a brother and best friend to his "brother", the heir to the Egyptian throne.  He discovered his heritage at about the age of 40 and he killed a guard who was beating a Hebrew man with a whip.  He had to run away, and he ended up in the camp of a man named Jethro.  He married one of Jethro's daughters and learned how to be the shepherd of many goats and sheep.  It was 80 years after his birth that God called Moses to tell him the plan that he had designed for Moses.
Let's take a look at this life plan.  Moses was born, hidden, grew up in a palace as a brother to the king, discovered his true roots, ran to the desert, got married and learned shepherding.  Each step was designed to enable Moses to be the leader of the Exodus of God's people from Egypt.  Who but Moses could approach the king and be so bold as to demand the release of the Pharaoh's slaves without being killed?  The Pharaoh had grown up with Moses and loved him.  He wouldn't kill him, and the respect he had learned for Moses moved him to hear Moses' words.  Being a shepherd taught Moses all the qualities that he needed to be a great leader.  He was now ready for the epic journey out of Egypt and into the promised land.
     Moses had no knowledge whatsoever of God's plan for his life until God revealed it at age 80.  Are you ever too old to begin your ministry?  No.  God knows just what He's doing and He has been working on your life plan undercover.  Sometimes you don't know anything about it until your time has come to begin.

Jonah was another person in the bible.  We all know the story of the whale, but let's look at God's plan.  Jonah was a prophet.  He knew the Lord and had been led of the Lord before.  God called him to go to Ninevah and call the people to repentance.  Jonah didn't want to do it.  He had no love for Ninevites.  They had been involved in the slaughter of many of his brethren and he wanted no part of offering them the chance to repent.  He took a ship and tried to go in another direction other than the one God had directed.  Long story short, he ended up going overboard and being swallowed by a whale.  He repented and was given a second chance.  He went to Ninevah and called the people to repentance.  Did God have a plan? yes.  Was it accomplished?  yes.  Are we able to thwart God's plan?  No.  He prepared Jonah and gave him a job that would help him grow spiritually and to learn about repentance and forgiveness.  He also was instrumental in leading an entire people through repentance to God.

David is one of the most famous of the Hebrew Kings.  He ran into many obstacles while he was growing up even after the prophet anointed him King.  In the end, he did become king.  In the process he learned leadership, trust in God, fearlessness, patience, compassion, and many other things that helped him to be a good and beloved king.  God knew that King Saul would chase him down like a hunting dog, but God did not allow King Saul to harm him.  strangely enough, David was the only person who could calm the demon within King Saul.  Many people tried to thwart God's plan for a good and loyal king.  None succeeded.  Can others prevent God's plan from coming to pass?  No.  Did God have his way in making David King?  Yes, and this was important in the lineage of Christ.


Joseph was a son of Jacob and was clearly one of his favorites.  His brothers dug a pit and put him in it one day with the intention of leaving him there to die.  Instead they sold him to slave traders.  He was blamed for a crime he didn't commit and he was put into jail.  He did end up as the second leader in the land of Egypt because of the gift God gave him to interpret dreams.  God had a strange way of getting him there if we look at it through human eyes, but he was being trained and he was learning humility.  He learned bookkeeping from his first boss.  This helped him to feed many people during the famine.  Many people tried to thwart God's plan, but God used their behaviors to Joseph's good.  Did God have his way?  Yes.  Could other people thwart God's plan for Joseph and for his people Israel? no.

Just take a look at your life.  I'm sure you'll start to see a pattern.  There have been doors that have opened, and doors that were locked shut.  you have experienced trials and victories.  Have sick people always been brought to you in one way or another?  Maybe you'll end up in the health field. Do people constantly tell you their troubles?  Perhaps counseling in one form or another is in your future.  Do you always happen to end up in certain types of circumstances?  God is directing your path.  Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not unto your own understanding of things.  In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path.