Proverbs 16:9(NLT)
“We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps.”
I recently served on an interview panel where we asked the candidates some pretty tough questions. They were all vying for the same position and had varying backgrounds and levels of experience. There was one question from the panel that seemed to stomp most of them. They were asked, “What is your greatest disappointment and if given the opportunity, how would you make it an accomplishment?” Admittedly, it’s a pretty intense question that given on the spot could require a person to do some heavy-duty brainstorming. It was challenging for them and some candidate asked us to repeat the question. Others asked if we could be more specific or explain what we meant by the question.
It’s a complicated question because it asks a person to remember a disappointing experience without the lens of regret or pessimism. How a person answers this question speaks to whether they’ve thought about the question before. It indicates whether an individual understands that life teaches us lessons and thinks about their mistakes with a goal of learning that lesson. The answer discerns if we’ve ever thought deeply about the mistakes of our past, and more to the point, have we thought about what we could have done to make things better. For the Christian, the answer speaks to our level of responsibility for our walk in Christ. More importantly, it reveals if we have taken ownership of the power and authority that Christ has given us to conquer and overcome.
Pondering disappointments that have left a huge dent in our lives is one thing but talking about them in front of others is completely different. This highlights the importance of self-reflection and examination to our faith. We do need to look at things from the perspective of where our level of faith was when we were going through it, and where our faith is now. If we use that lens, we can then give ourselves some grace, and analyze what we might have done differently. This is especially important for our failed relationships of the past. We can sometimes learn lessons from them that will help us.
I thought about this question for a while and began to write down some of my thoughts. Writing down things makes it more real to me, and I get a lot of inspiration this way. I had braced myself for emotions of sadness, but after I started to write down deeply felt disappointments of my past, to my surprise, I wasn’t overwhelmed with strong emotions. It wasn’t a negative experience at all, but one that swelled my heart with deep gratitude instead. Before I knew it, I had written over two pages of thoughts and they were a revelation unfolded about how God has Fathered me through tough times and brought me through them.
Jeremiah 29:11(ESV) says, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jonah, one of God’s prophets of the Old Testament, attempted to get away from God because he didn’t want to accept the assignment God had given him. He tried to sail to a place that was remote and far away, but this was pointless. God knows our goings and comings. He knows everything there is to know about us, and we can’t get away from Him, nor should we want to. God knows the plans He has for our lives, and these plans are the very best that we could hope for.
God has given every person a purpose, and it may not be what you envision for yourself right now, but you will grow into it as you continue to diligently seek Him. We see ourselves differently as we mature and grow, and this is because of life’s experiences. They teach us and help us to evolve. One of the most important lessons they teach us is that God holds our future in His hands. Our hope is in Him, not in other people or the situations they bring. God is the One with the Plan, and the more we grow in Him through Christ, the more we will live with the abundance, peace, and joy that Jesus Christ made available to us.
The insecurities and mistakes of the past can cripple us in relationships in the future if we don’t take the time to look at them through new eyes. The Holy Spirit, our teacher, makes all the difference in our lives, and we begin to see through the eyes of the Spirit, we look at the people who hurt us with forgiveness and the love of Christ. We see them with an understanding that God loves them too, and just like He has a plan for us, He has a plan for them. We played a part in their lives that we were meant to play and going further with them was not to be. Through the power and authority of Christ, we need to release any negative feelings or attitudes surrounding that person.
Through them, we learned what we like and what we don’t like and can’t tolerate. We learned about our own weaknesses. Maybe we were too selfish, too needy, or too invested. Maybe we neglected our walk with the Lord and now know the price for that. Whatever it was that we learned, we’re stronger for it. Because of the mistakes, we’re motivated to prioritize in a greater way, and understand that our relationship with God is the driving force of all good things in life. Everything that we have is because of Him, and everything that we are is because of who He has made us in Christ. When we are truly grateful for this reality, we’ll see our greatest disappointment as a steppingstone to our greatest blessing. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
English Standard Version (ESV), The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
“Your Future, Hope and Plans are From the Lord”, written by Kim Times, edited by Fran Mack and K. Stephens for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2023. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord!