What To Do When Our Plans Fail

We’ve all had them. One of those days when you wake up and say, “I just want to stay in bed; I have had enough of life.” There is not a person out there who has not felt that at one point or another. The reasons for feeling this way are many. When thinking about this idea of how hard life can be and when I have this defeatist attitude. There have been times when I’ve thought I am a failure because things didn’t go the way I planned. Then I decided to look at the root issue. Am I depressed? Did someone close to me die? Am I struggling in my relationships with others? Maybe, it is just me? It is when we arrive at that last question that things turn. From that question things can get so much worse, if we truly adopt the mindset that we are utterly and truly alone.

Honestly, when I ask myself that question, I have to realize how absurdly selfish that is. We get caught in this vicious cycle of “woe is me” because we wrongly insert ourselves as the center of our own worlds. What is needed is the inevitable kick in the butt from God. That kick is always known as humility. It is not about me!

I could go on for days talking about my selfishness with my own life. The times I have gotten frustrated with work, with others, with my personal relationships, and then there is family. My favorite question of all is what is my purpose here? When these things hit my life, I can be almost useless at times because I’m not focused on what is important. We get so sidetracked by these multitudes of life changing relationships and questions that we miss the big picture. That big picture is that God has everything under control.

When I summon up the courage to accept the basic principle that God has everything under control, something else takes over. Alright God has control, but he needs to take care of this soon. I have expectations of God that I have no right to have. Who am I to have a time table when it comes to the plans of my life? We need to let the reality set in that we do not belong to ourselves but belong to the Creator that beautifully made us.

Sometimes I need to humble myself with the fruit of the spirit that annoys most, which is patience. We live in such an instant gratification culture and too many times that instant gratification expectation creeps in on my relationship with God. From there the questions then arise: Where are you God? Do you care? I asked you for help and nothing has happened. If I were to be still and know that he is God, I would probably hear “Hey don’t worry about tomorrow for worrying can not add a minute to your life, so what good is it?”  (Jer. 29:11)  (Matt. 6:27)

My selfish need to know the plan will always throw my entire life into chaos. When all that’s needed is the humility to know and fully embrace the fact that I am a creation of the creator, and I am not my own. My only responsibility as a Christian is to love Christ and make him known. That is so hard to do in this day and age when there are a multitude of things to occupy my mind and time. From all of the things that waste my time and energy, I have to come to a place and humble myself to boldly say I am not good enough and you know that doesn’t matter. No longer will the things of myself and this world that are out of my control keep me down. It is not the situation of depression, family loss, or broken relationships that keep me down. It is my selfish expectations of how God should run my life.

It is not the situation of depression, family loss, or broken relationships that keep me down. It is my selfish expectations of how God should run my life.

The solution is truly making sure God is always number one. Everyone knows that healthy marriages or friendships are not always maintained easily. First, it takes communication, and that is where we all must seek God. Just talk to him and let him know that you want his will for your life. Then it takes trust and patience. For those of us that are stuck in a hole on where your life is going, let’s take a breath and raise it all up to him. Lastly, we show the love of God by acknowledging that we have a desire and need for him.

The time has come for all of us to knock ourselves down a peg or two. “God you created me; do with me as you will and when you want to.” Please don’t read this and think that this excuses us from the great commission until God gives some divine revelation to us. For we need to all put our hands to the plow and not look back. In simple terms, we need to serve right where we are at.

 

We want to hear from you! How do you respond to God when your plans fall apart? 

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