“The Will of God will never take you where the Grace of God will not protect you.”

Lately there has been a lot of talk about the future, talk about decisions that need to be made, talk about which choices are the right choices, and an effort to have a plan in general. I don’t like flying blind, so lately, just trying to figure out my future has been really stressful. When I get in a bad mood (which I have been lately), I have a habit of grabbing my Bible and opening it up to whatever page it opens to. There are always answers to my problems on the pages it opens to.

Recently, I got down about the future and some of life’s little distractions, and upon grabbing my Bible, it opened to Proverbs 13. Well, to anyone else, it might have been “just another chapter”, but the weird part for me was that less than two weeks ago, I was having a bad day and also grabbed my Bible, and that day it also opened to Proverbs 13. Since it happened twice within a month, and opened there on both occasions when the problems I was facing had no comparisons; I knew God was trying to show me something. I reread the Scripture, and upon reading it, as well as some more text from random sources, I realized that this whole time God has been spelling out my solutions.

Throughout all my life, I have always been very impatient and I’ve always been curious to know why things have happened, or how something works. I was one of the kids that stood and watched and asked “why?” to anything you said; and I always wanted the answer right then.

But that’s just it – I don’t need an answer. It’s already been provided. I’m so worried about plans and how things are going to end up, that I never actually stop and study the real picture. The plans are already there, along with every one of the answers to life’s problems. They aren’t plans that I have come up with on my own; they are God’s plans for me. As long as He leads the way, my future is in good hands.

I made the best choice a long time ago to live for God. That was the best choice I have ever made. And upon making that decision, my future (something I keep pondering over) has already been determined. “For I know the plans I have for you” this is the Lord’s declaration – “the plans for your [welfare] not for [disaster] to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11

My future is safe, my path – chosen. Now all I have to do is continue to follow God. Every choice I’m faced with, as long as I keep my focus on God, will be the right choice. Sometimes it may seem easier to just go with the flow, or do something that we know in our hearts is wrong, just because (in this world) it seems like it can take us farther or seem more beneficial. However, if we choose to walk away and do what’s right, in the long run we will be rewarded.

We all slip and stumble; the important thing is finding our way back. I keep having to remind myself that life is unfair sometimes, and I can’t always get what I want when I want it. But to get something you never had, you have to do something you never did. When God takes something from your grasp, He’s not punishing you, but merely opening your hands to receive something better. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23

We all need reassurance at times. I’m writing this as a reminder that all the answers come in time, and that patience is most definitely a virtue, but most importantly, to remind myself that my future is secure because it’s in God’s hands and the ultimate outcome will be glorious.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6

“Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” Philippians 4:6

~ Melissa Faulkner age 20 Tennessee, USA