Is God Okay With My Plans?

Lean on, trust in, and be confident in the Lord with all your heart and mind and do not rely on your own insight or understanding. In all your ways know, recognize, and acknowledge Him, and He will direct and make straight and plain your paths. (Pro 3:5-6 AMP)

Our future well being depends largely on the decisions we make today. We are a world in transition; we change homes, cars, jobs, cities, and spouses as easily as changing clothes. Many of the problems in our lives are the direct result of decision that were not well thought out, not prayed over and are emotionally driven.
In many decisions the cost was not counted, the impact was not measured, and the long-term implications were not considered.

We feel right and justified about our decision, but only time can reveal the end results of our choices.

The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD. All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but the LORD weigheth the spirits. Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established. (Pro 16:1-3 KJV)

An important principle to remember is that, we will reap the results of our decisions, whether good or evil

Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. (Gal 6:7-8 KJV)

You do not reap always reap immediately, some seeds take years to produce, and when they begin to bring forth it is in a larger quantity than the seed sewn. No one plants an apple seed expecting only one apple to be produced as a result. The hope of the grower is that the single seed that has been planted will eventually produce thousands of apples.

There are some questions we need to ask ourselves about our plans for the future

• Have I consulted God about my plans – prayer is our way to communicate with Him. The wisdom to make a Godly decision is not found in our flesh.

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. (Jas 1:5 KJV)

• Have I consulted Godly counsel – your choice of counsel may affect your decision

Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away. Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish. (Psa 1:1-6 KJV)

• What is my motivation

1. Why am I making this decision?
2. Why now?

• What affect will my decision have on me, my family, my church and my relationship with God?

• Is God in the center of my plans or just an afterthought?

Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee. (Psa 143:8 KJV)

• What has God spoken to me in prayer (silence is not acceptance)
• What is my the Spirit of God in me telling me – ignore your flesh for a moment, and focus on what God is speaking to your spirit
• If God says no to my plans will I listen?

How to get God involved in your plans

1. Prayer
2. Applying Biblical principles to your choices
3. Seeking Godly counsel
4. Obedience to the voice of God and the voice of Godly men and women in your life

Allow the Spirit of God to direct you- be open to a change in plans if He so desires. The greatest place to be is in the center of God's will. To be able to know of a certainty that you are where God wants you to be, doing what He wants you to do.

Real peace comes through obedience, and there is assurance that if this is His plan then He is in control. I just have to walk in obedience and faith, trusting not in my own ability but in the perfect plan of an Almighty, Wise God!

If My People Pray

If My People Pray

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
(2Ch 7:14 KJV)

The means of spiritual change have remained constant throughout the centuries of time. It has always involved a humbling of man in the presence of a holy God. It has always involved a desperate cry from a sincere heart. Pride has become a barrier between God and man. We have become too proud to bow before Him, too high and mighty to humble ourselves in His presence and we have paid dearly for this attitude.

It has cost us a deeper relationship with Jesus; it has decreased our sensitivity to his voice. We have missed the protection of His arms and the confidence that comes through an intimate relationship with Him. Our families have suffered tremendously due to the fact that a prayerless home is a powerless home. The hedge that should have been created through consistent prayer has been broken through and torn down by the enemy of our soul. Worship becomes hollow, praise becomes just noise and preaching becomes powerless to deliver the captive without the depth of relationship that is born through prayer.

We have learned how to replace divine devotion with entertainment and being a living sacrifice with worldly pleasures. We have learned how to create an artificial atmosphere through music and motivational methods, but we stand naked and unarmed before the enemy of our soul. He is unaffected by the clamor and confusion we have created through prayerless church.

We have sought for earthly relevance and have lost our longing for heaven. A lost world does not need a socially relevant church; it needs a spiritually revived church.We must be a church that longs to pray, a body of believers who are dependent on the moving of the Holy Ghost and not the music, motivational musings or antics of Pentecostal cheerleaders.

If we will follow the advice of 2 Chron. 7:14, we can change directions. We must humble ourselves before him, confessing our shortcomings and failures. We must return to heart rending, soul changing, and spirit lifting prayer. Our focus needs to be not on how He can please me but how I can please Him. The depth of our very soul needs to cry out to make contact with Him daily. We must be willing to search our hearts for any wickedness, any spirit of pride or iniquity and then be willing to make the necessary changes in our lives.

The future of the church does not rest in our ability to fit in with the fads and fazes of the world, but on our ability to return to relationship with God that involves a daily communication and a spiritually sensitivity to His voice. The future of the family will be decided by the amount of prayer invested, the depth of a man’s ministry will be controlled by the depth of his prayer life. The level of dedication and consecration of the congregation will decide the Apostolic power available to the assembly. If we will pray heaven will come down and hell will flee, if we will humble ourselves, God will work through us and great and mighty things will be accomplished in these last few hours of time. If My People Will Pray