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Trust Fall

    I am at the age (college age) where everyone is trying to map out their lives. First it starts with picking a college and a degree. That involves knowing where you want to go (close to home or far, far away) and what area you want to study. Then we have to narrow it down to specific fields and jobs and careers. We have to figure out what steps to take in college (internships, clubs, fraternities, scholarships) to get us to our goals. And then there's always talk about marriage and kids and finding a place to live etc. All around me I hear my classmates planning and plotting their futures. Some people are so specific that they even narrow it down to an age by which they feel they need to find a spouse and settle. It seems like real life comes fast at you in college.

    That's a lot to take in just coming out of your teen years. But no matter what age you're at and what decisions you're facing, we all have to be able to make those kinds of decisions fully relying on God. I am happy to say that while the realities of life seem shockingly close, I am completely at peace with my life because I have my trust in Jesus and He makes the plans for me. I don't know what job I'll end up with, who I'll marry, where I'll be living 5 years from now, or how many kids I'll have someday. My future is a blank slate for Him to fill. Two things I do know: That I am exactly where I am supposed to be right now and that His plans for me far surpass anything I could imagine.

    Jeremiah 29:11 is quoted time and time again but the truth of it never fails to penetrate my heart. "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. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. "(NIV)

    He has great plans for us! All we have to do is seek Him out and put our lives back into the hands that created them.

Proverbs 16:3 Commit to the Lord whatever you do and He will establish your plans. (NIV)

Proverbs 16:9 In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps. (NIV)

    He guides us every day on what decisions to make, if we'll only open our hearts and listen. He wants us to have the most fulfilling life possible and it's only possible through Him. His Holy Spirit lives inside of us and gently leads us down the right paths. But to hear that tiny voice, we need to be still. Sometimes we think we need to rush into figuring everything out and knowing every detail. But when we are unsure of what step to take next, we are to be still as we wait patiently upon the Lord for an answer. We don't know what He's doing behind the scenes, after all. He goes before us and He works it all out in perfect timing for us to step into the blessing He's prepared for us.

Exodus 14:14 The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. (NIV)

Deuteronomy 1:29-31 Then I said to you, "Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them. The Lord your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes, and in the wilderness. There you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place." (NIV)

    I just want to end by sharing a way that the Lord brilliantly illustrated "His plans versus my plans" to me… There is a light fixture on the ceiling of my room that is enclosed, but there are two light bulbs lighting the fixture. One day, I came into my room and I realized that one light had gone out because the whole room was noticeably dimmer. I was lazy and I put off changing the light bulb for a while. But every time I came into my room I was bothered by how dim it was. Until one day, much later, I came into my room and switched on the light like usual. I didn't even think about it being dim anymore. After a couple moments, I felt the Lord speak to me using this as an analogy. He reminded me of how my room was still dimly lit, yet I had been failing to notice it for who knows how long! I had grown used to the dimness of the room somewhere along the way and forgotten it was ever brighter. Then He said, "that's your life." Ouch did that hit home for me.

    He revealed to me that I had grown complacent living my life in a way that was not in His fullness. That my life could be brighter with Him. I had settled for decisions that were less than what He had in mind for me. When I first made those decisions, I recognized that there could be more for me. But I pushed those thoughts aside until I completely forgot about them and was genuinely convinced that this was "as good as it gets." But He so sweetly pointed out to me that while that decision looked okay to me, He had greater things in mind. Things I couldn't see yet. He told me to let go of my plans and trust that something better was coming, even though I didn't know what. He told me to free fall back in His arms, and trust that He would be there to catch me. Sometimes that fall feels like forever friends, but He is still there ready to catch you just in time before you hit the ground.

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