Fear No Fear

“There are many plans in a man’s heart, nevertheless the counsel of the Lord will stand” (Proverbs 19:21, MEV). God loves us enough to have plans that include us. We all like making plans. And our plans change. A LOT. But God also has plans. Plans that are good for everyone. Plans that factor in everything. Plans that include us. Not because we’re good at what we do, but because He loves us and likes doing things with us. Like toddlers allowed to ‘help’ their parents fix things, we are probably more trouble than help. Yet the Lord still seeks us out. The Lord set things up so that He moves through humanity, not in spite of humanity. What we need to understand is that the Lord doesn’t NEED us. He uses us because He WANTS to. Look at the list of people in the scriptures. Murderers, adulterers, liars, people with weak trust, incestuous, rage-filled, vengeful, and worse. These people were not qualified. They did not deserve it. But God worked on their hearts, God reached out to them, and He used them. Some repented. Others were used in spite of themselves to show that it was God and not them who was doing the thing. We are not qualified any more than they are. It is not the outward actions of our words and bodies that determines who we are, but the quiet thoughts inside our hearts that no one else can see. God can see them, however. Everyone has fallen short of the glory of God. None of us can do it on our own. But God still makes plans. Plans that survive their encounter with humanity. Plans that survive what WE can do. Plans that work because it is God who plans them and God who brings them about. He still offers His hand to us. So that we can be involved. So that we can stand where He wants someone to stand. Say what He wants someone to say. God is still asking, ‘Whom shall I send?’ And God is still waiting for your answer. Will you put your hand in His? Will you trust Him enough to do things His way? Will you repent, let Him cleanse your heart, and walk with Him in righteousness as He works through you, around you, and in you? Will you go with God how He wants to go with you?