The Master's Plan

Power
Ezekiel 37:1-38:23

"Then he asked me, 'Human, can these bones live?' I answered, 'Lord God, only you know.'" (Ezekiel 37:3)

Yes! Alright, Ezekiel! Score! 10 points! A+! I'm so excited, and ready to cheer Ezekiel on for this response that he hit right on the "vomer bone." I only wish I could say that I would be as on top of it as good ol' Zeke. (A little familiar but we've been together for 38 chapters now.) When confronted with a question such as, "Can these bones live?" I feel enormous pressure to answer, to know, to come to a conclusion. The fact that someone has asked this of me even somehow implies that I should have the correct response. I can't let them down.

But Ezekiel acknowledges that he doesn't know everything nor does he need to know everything... for God does. Ezekiel also acknowledges that things that would seem to be all too impossible- living bones, ha!- are possible with God's amazing power.

Priorities
Psalm 132:1-9

"He said, 'I will not go home to my house, or lie down on my bed, or close my eyes, or let myself sleep until I find a place for the Lord." (Psalm 132:3-5)

While it is true that the Psalmist here is referring to a physical place, it is also a place in the Psalmist's heart and life that is being demonstrated. Making the search for a place of worship the first goal shows that God is a priority in the writer's life. Imagine if cities were planned around finding the perfect place of worship or prayer garden or ecumenical center. How different things would be! Similarly, if I were to plan my whole day around worshipping God and God's will for my life... Lord, forgive me. Far too often I lose myself and forget that You are my reason for living. You are the center of my life, and help me to reflect that in every way, every day.

Plan
James 4:1-17

"Some of you say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to some city. We will stay there a year, do business and make money.' But you do not know what will happen tomorrow! Your life is like a mist. You can see it for a short time, but then it goes away. So you should say, 'If the Lord wants, we will live and do this or that.'" (Jame 4:13-15)

"Enshallah." "Primero Dios y..." "Se Deus quizer." All forms of "If the Lord wants..." Is it only us crazy Americans who actually fool ourselves into thinking that we can plan our lives out. We each only need to think back a bit to a time we had a plan for our whole lives. I know that graduating from high school, this is not where I dreamt I would be 7 years later. (Ouch... that long already.)

Logistically, in today's society we do need to make some plans so we don't miss the boat...both literally and figuratively. (Tickets are helpful.) But, it can be extremely freeing and calming to recognize that while we might see the possibility "for a short time," our lives are really "a mist." If God wants, He'll make it happen. Hey silly, crazy planner, you can give it a break... God really is in control, and if He wants, it'll happen. From a worried planner to the Master Planner, thank You God! Take my life... take it all. I "will live and do this or that" according to what You want.