Wait a minute!
But they soon forgot what he had done and did not wait for his plan to unfold. In the desert they gave in to their craving; in the wilderness they put God to the test. So he gave them what they asked for, but sent a wasting disease among them.
–Psalm 106:13-15
One of my favorite actresses is Meryl Streep. The movie that won me over was Bridges of Madison County (yes, I know, I know. She had an affair and it was wrong, but that’s a discussion for another time, mkay?). What stuck with me about the storyline is that she and Clint Eastwood’s characters had both eaten at the same cafe in the town in Italy where she was from. I wonder, if she had waited instead of settling for someone that was essentially “good enough” out of impatience to get to America, would she and this other man have met at that cafe? Perhaps she would have met and married the man she was truly meant to be with, if only she had been patient and waited a little longer.
Waiting for God’s plan to unfold in our life can sometimes feel like torture, especially when we are anticipating the good things He has coming for us. It’s so important, though, that we trust wholly in His timing and don’t run ahead of God. What may seem like a minor situation to us may in fact have a far reaching effect if it doesn’t unfold as God wants it to. Only He can see what the future holds and how our decisions today will impact that future. Yes, He is a God of unending grace and if we take a misstep, His grace will cover us and work everything for the good. But we also don’t want to abuse the gift of His grace by leaving Him out of our decisions and assuming He’ll have our back later. As the verses above note, He will sometimes give us what we want, and that’s not necessarily always a good thing! We have to trust, even when it doesn’t make sense at the time, that God knows exactly whose lives will be affected if His plan for our situation doesn’t unfold in a specific order and timing. Only He knows the exact way your life needs to be woven into the fabric of the Kingdom. Lives will be impacted by the degree to which we allow God to do the weaving, which is important for us to remember when we are tempted to take over. Trust Him today! Decide that you are willing to do what it takes to let God direct each step, even when it’s difficult, and He will reward you for your faith. God is the ultimate “man with the plan”. Believe it!