Life rarely goes as planned. And if you’re a believer, that’s almost a guarantee. We exchange our blessings of having the Lord’s provision and protection for also letting Him have His plan with us. For control freaks like me, this can be scary. But it needn’t be…
The prophet Samuel knew all about changed plans and disappointments. In I Samuel 16 We learn that Samuel is grieved, brokenhearted, that God is selecting another king. Perhaps he had grown to love Saul. Or perhaps he couldn’t imagine a better king then Saul. We are not told. We are just told that he is grieved. So God sends Samuel, still broken hearted and still grieving, to the house of Jesse. One after another Jesse’s sons pass by, rejected by God to serve as King. When Samuel sees the first son he even says, “This Is surely the king!” But, alas, he nor the six other brothers was selected. Finally, confused, Samuel asks if there are any other sons. As an embarrassing afterthought, they go fetch the youngest son David from the field who is watching the sheep. It says that David is handsome and ruddy, but was not the king that Samuel had in mind. He was probably very young, not even a man. Yet, we are told God selected him because “The Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” You see, the Lord is not limited by circumstance or time. He had time to grow young David into a man before serving as King.
Sometimes the Lords plans do not look like our plans. His ways are not our ways. Which is why we need to write our plans in pencil instead of permanent ink.
Because God can see the heart, It is important to be in constant prayer with him for guidance. Everything from jobs to choosing friends to finding a mate. There are somethings we cannot know because we cannot see the heart, but God can. Single Ladies and gentlemen, Do not stick unmovingly to your checklist of things you want in a mate. He might not be 6’1″ with black hair and have a regular job. He might look different than what YOU had in mind. Don’t limit God’s blessings based on your fleshly desires and plans. We should all leave ourselves open for room for God’s plan. That means being flexible, expecting the unexpected and being open to (temporary) disappointment.
Samuel was grieved and then disappointed, probably even questioned God’s wisdom. Left to his own will Samuel would have never chosen David. But David was the very best choice for King later. When we submit to our God we submit to his will, but it is a submission into his loving, fatherly hands that see all and know all. Keep praying for guidance & discernment, friends! His best might be what you never expected.
Sweet Mimosa 