When Everything Goes Wrong

Photo credit: alvimann from morguefile.com Have you had one of those times when everything that could go wrong does go wrong? You know, the cat gets stuck in the tree, your dog runs away from you and your best friend moves to Timbuktu? I had one of those last weekend (which is why I had no blog post). But I don't have a cat nor a dog and if my best friend ever moves to Timbuktu, well there'll be no more blog posts from me. So what did happen?

Moving to a new location can be accompanied by stress, but if you're moving from one state to another, it can be even more stressful. And this is what happened to me last weekend. I became so stressed I thought I would have a heart attack. Now that I look back on it I ask myself, why did I become so stressed? I know the answer. Nothing went according to plan. People who were supposed to help me either came too late or just didn't show up.

Be anxious for nothing

After I had calmed down, I looked to my Bible for answers. I asked God to forgive me because I know what His word says about plans, about anxiety and about people. Proverbs 12 : 25 says, "An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up." Philippians 4 : 6 says, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Did I know these verses of scripture before? Of course I did, but I allowed anxiety to consume my being until all I could see was the mammoth task ahead of me. 


God may stop your plans


I had everything figured out - or so I thought. I would go to the house, finish my packing and at the prearranged time, the people would come and get everything on the truck and I would be out of there. In the Bible we see many people whose plans failed. David was one of them. Even though he was "a man after God' s heart", his plans to build a temple for God came to naught because God didn't want him to. (1 Chronicles 28: 3). 


People may stop your plans


When Zerubbabel and his friends assembled in Jerusalem to build the temple of the Lord, they came up against serious opposition from their enemies. These people went so far as to write a letter to the king, telling him that if the wall was rebuilt the city would lose revenue. No king likes to hear this and so King Xerxes issued an order and the project came to a screeching halt. Their plans failed even though they were doing something for God. 


Proverbs 19 : 21 says, "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails." I couldn't understand why my plans failed and, I daresay, neither could Zerubbabel and his friends.


What can we do when our plans fail? Should we gnaw our nails and pull our hair in frustration? David and Zerubbabel were godly men and yet their plans fell apart. We should not think that God is against us. The Bible says, "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" (Jeremiah 29 : 11). 


So, here are a few things we can do:


1. Search His Word to see what is His will concerning your plans. (Psalm 119 : 105)
2. As God to take charge. (Proverbs 16 : 3)
3. Seek advice from others, (Proverbs 15 : 22; 20 : 18)
4. Take time to plan  ( Proverbs 21 : 5)
5. Do not trust solely in man, but in God. (Psalm 118: 8)


God wants you blessed, He wants your plans to succeed, but according to His will and in His time. Years later, under King Darius, the Jews were given free reign to build the temple. David allowed his son, Solomon, to build the temple as God had instructed him and this weekend I succeeded in getting my furniture and other belongings moved out of the house.