Morning Moments

Man Plans - God Proceeds

Learning to "go with it" is not easy for all of us. I guess there will always be those who fly by the seat of their pants, but some of us have to work hard, study hard, pray hard, and live fast. The early Church sat around in fellowship in Jerusalem while the world was dying and going to hell. THEN GOD, imposed the law of thermodynamics that says, "the greater the heat, the greater the expansion," and raised up the firebrand, Paul. As my brother Fred says, "whoda thunk it?"

After having served the Lord for over 40 years, I still remain amazed at the way God continues to "alter our plans." Being flexible is a big part of ministry, as well as adapting to cultures and customs. His Plan is always the big plan, and as we pray and plan and remain flexible, God Proceeds.

Don't misunderstand what I am saying! We must always PRAY, PLAN, PREPARE, and PROCEED, but we must also ALWAYS allow God to change things to fit the bigger picture. Now how long do you think it takes one to learn the lesson? A lifetime, that's all.

Most of us love the "comfort zone" where we can anticipate all the problems and circumvent the disasters and pitfalls, but real life isn't that way.

I was reading Paul's second letter to the Corinthians this morning. We all know the stern letter he had written them earlier, but in that second letter, he reveals his heart and says, "For even when we came into Macedonia, our flesh (body & soul) had NO rest...." Wait just a minute, Paul, don't you know we have "rest" in Christ Jesus. How flippant and arrogant we are sometimes. It must make God sick. He continues, "...but we were afflicted in everything, without were fightings, within were fears."

My, my, what kind of leader is this? Well, in case you haven't noticed, a godly one who wrote half the New Testament. He did not allow his fears, his afflictions, nor anything else to stop him though. He prayed, he planned, he prepared, and he proceeded, always with caution and flexibility.

In the case of the Corinthians, Titus brought him word regarding the positive response of the Corinthians to his letter and that brought him great relief. Regardless of our strength, there is weakness, that His strength might be perfected in our weakness, and that the Holy Spirit and other believers might be a source of comfort and encouragement to us. Thank you, Jesus, for Your Holy Spirit and my companions. Now help me to comfort others with the comfort wherewith I am comforted.