Jeremiah 29: 11 "'For I know the plans I have made for you"

"For I know the plans I have made for you..."

This is one of my favorite verses. I like to think about what this means, this is not just a simple verse. Our God has shared something very significant with us in these words and there is much to consider.

To me this means, that no matter what I face in life, I know it is according to His will for me. I will ask God to reveal His plans to me and turn my decisions over to Him. Good days, bad days will come and it is not random, or simple fate or chance. My path is guided by my Father, my Abba and He will allow what He allows. He has given me so many things to be thankful for and I have been so blessed. But I know that sometimes He will make the road straight and sometimes He will let it become crooked. His plans for me will not always be easy. He may allow something in my life that is dark, horrible or terrifying, but He will do so according to His plan. When I lie in bed at night with fear of the unknown, I will try to remember that I know the One who knows my way. When I am angry or depressed, He is with me. I will rest in assurance of who God is and His ways are higher than my ways and His plans are higher than my plans. My job is to pick up what He places before me and walk with it, with Him at my side. Some of the darkest struggles of my life so far have been the things that have equipped me to help others in my life. Heartbreak, anorexia, depression...there are lives that I know have changed when God worked through me from what I went through and shared with others. Luke's illness and Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome, in particular led me to a career of helping infants and children all over the world. Pain is not wasted. God's seeds always produce fruit.

There are lessons for me to learn and hopefully people to continue to help, even under the pressure of a burden. It works the other way around too, when I am broken I give others the chance to be Jesus to me. Each of our lives touches the lives of those around us. The struggles we face bring us closer to God and if we are lucky, closer to the ones in our lives that we love. The hard road, the difficult time builds courage and perseverance. Eleanor Roosevelt said, "You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do." Maya Angelou's words also ring true when she said this about courage, "One isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest."

I believe these things to be true. These days of rain pass and the sun always shines again. Each day matters. You may not see it now, but someday you will know in full. There is purpose to every moment that God gives us on this earth. When our work is finished, He will let us come home to Him to begin the greatest adventure of all. So if your heart is heavy, I hope these words soothe you. Walk through this life with confidence and assurance that the way is planned and your life is important and you matter to the One who hung the stars in the sky.