One of the firm convictions that many Christians have is that out lives are purposeful.
God knows about us before we were born. The very number of our days and the very hairs on our head are known. We are not here by accident. God has made us unique, and has plans for us.
The question is what does that look like?
I remember getting my first iPhone in it’s beautiful white shiny box, wrapped in cellophane. Sitting down and slowly pulling the box open. And there it was! Pristine and perfect in all its ways. Not a scratch or blemish. Just breathtaking and full of promise.
Is God’s “plan” for our life like that?
I can remember coming back to faith as a Uni student many years ago and getting really excited by a verse that was going round at the time:
“… 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….” Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)
I dreaming about how this perfect plan would unfurl winding down the year! The perfect family, the perfect job, butterflies, rainbows, perfect health, maybe fame and fortune. Maybe my own Wikipedia entry as one of the great heroes of the age.
But within a month I began to wonder. I had a really bad patch and did some foolish things that certainly would NOT have been part of Plan: A. Did that mean I was now on Plan: B? I’d better be careful.
Then I was sick and missed a big missions conference. “Oh No! Was that the ‘Mountain-top’ experience that would propel me to great heights and now I’d missed it.”
And what about that huge young adults retreat with all those gorgeous young women attending that I couldn’t go to — What if I’ve missed that one moment to meet the ‘right’ one?
And then I got a poor mark in some exam. And then I had to choose my subjects for next year with very little notice — and there were no visions or voices in my head or even Bible verse telling me which were God’s perfect subjects for my life plan!! You’d think I’d at least be led to Second Hezekiah 14:32 “History thou shalt take as thine major; And biochemistry thou shalt enrolleth for as a minor. Mathematics thou shalt not take. Cast it from thee at all times…”!
I was sure by the time I got to the end of the year that there had been so many foul ups and mistakes that I was up to God’s plan for my life Version: Windows:95! And no one wants that.
And then I thought about all the random things outside my control.
When I finished Year 12, I had filled the tertiary-study preferences form in to say Science or Science/Law at Melbourne Uni and I’d sent it off. I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do, and I wasn’t particularly interested in what God had to say about it. It just seemed to make sense.
Anyway, we lived in Clayton near Monash Uni. And so in early January when I got a “Do you want to change your preference?” form I hummed and ahh’ed and scribbled in a change of preference to Monash Uni -- just to see what it looked like.
But then, as I looked at the paper form all filled in and signed. I got cold feet. All my school mates would be at Melbourne, maybe I’d just leave things the way they were. So I swept the form and envelope off onto the side of my desk and forgot all about it and set out to enjoying the last part of the summer holidays.
However, about two weeks later I got a letter congratulating me on my acceptance into studying Science at Monash Uni. I was totally mystified!
Turned out mum had been in my room, noticed the change of preference and the closing date and thought to herself: “He’s forgotten to send that in, I’d better get it in the mail today.”
So there I was at Monash Uni. No praying about it. Not even a deliberate choice!!
If God HAD HAD a wonderful plan with my life -- maybe it was all going down the drain at Melbourne Uni whilst I was frittering my life away on Plan:Z at Monash!!
Ever feel like that?
How do you work out God’s plan for your life if circumstances conspire against you; If you keep stuffing things up monumentally from time to time? If illness or war or a pandemic quarantine comes upon you randomly?
What if f OTHER people mess up the part THEY are supposed to play in your life and you end up as unfair co-lateral damage?
I think our God IS purposeful.
Our life does have meaning. There are activities and vocations we do feel called to. There is good we can do and people we can inspire. There is beauty or music or art we can joyfully create; evil we can courageously resist.
But, I think it’s far more complex and subtle than my simple idea of “Plan: A”
