Scripture Reference: Ephesians 1:11, NASB- “In Him we also have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things in accordance with the plan of His will,”
Just when are we willing to accept the will of God? Is it when all else fails? I must admit that I do not understand God’s predestinations for myself or anyone else. However, I must accept God’s will and His plan.
Earlier this morning my daughter and I were discussing God and His plans for our lives. Interestingly, I had already captured that I would be writing about trusting God’s plans for lives before she brought the subject up during our morning walk. We did not get any closer to knowing God’s will for our lives but before we got off the phone, she received a text which was an answer to a prayer for one of her co-workers. My daughter proved to me that loving God and loving others are always the correct next move.
After our walk I returned to God’s Word and found Paul’s letter to the Ephesians to be powerful. In the very first verse Paul began with this introduction “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,” Paul knew who he was by the will of God. Can you and I trust that we are who we are and where we are right now by the will of God?
Ephesians 1:4 is mind-blowing “Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.” (NLT) God knew in the beginning that He predestined for us to be His children through Jesus Christ, according to His pleasure and will. Through the blood of Jesus Christ, we have the glorious riches of grace.
Today, we may not feel as if God is lavishing his kindness, wisdom, and understanding upon us but we can trust the promise of Ephesians 1:10 “And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth.” (NLT)
Wherever we are in God’s plan right now we can put our hope in Christ. When we choose to believe we do find the promise and guarantee of the Holy Spirit who guides us in knowing the next right thing to do.
More important than knowing what to do is to know God better. Ephesians 1:17 instructs us to pray for the Spirit of wisdom and revelation so we may know God better. (NIV) Can we trust, in the middle of our battles, that God is getting our attention to know Him better? Many of us came to know God best in the middle of the crises in our lives.
Nineteen years after alcoholism forced me to cry out to know God better, I am still meeting with Him and seeking His Word and getting to know Him better. Although I still wonder, at sixty-five, what God plans for me to be when I grow up, I do trust His plan and His will today more than any other time in my life.
Living under the grace of Jesus Christ we learn the fullness of God’s plan.
Who or what are you trusting today?
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for predestining that I would be Your child through Your Son Jesus Christ. Thank You for Your Spirit who helps us know You better each day. Help us to live in Your will. Thank You for loving us and adopting us as Your children. Amen.
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