by Jordy van Gaalen

Leaving Room for Hiccups

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“Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.”
Proverbs 16:3 NIV

Commit to the Lord. Whatever you do, work at it for God rather than for men. It is so easy to get caught up in earthly rewards. If we work hard, maybe we’ll get that next promotion. If I succeed in this, maybe they will finally acknowledge my value. If I earn enough to buy this, I won’t have to worry. The list can go on and on, as we get swept up in the current of working in an earthly mindset.

But things don’t always turn out according to our plan. We work incredibly hard, yet we fail to get that job of our dreams. We climb the ladder of success, yet it doesn’t pan out the way we had hoped. 

“In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.”
Proverbs 3:6 ESV

Do you feel your plans get thwarted? Even my daily plans never seem to go according to my personal desires or expectations. I have plans to accomplish things, to get things done, maybe some “me” time, and how often does something get in the way of that? Someone calls you unexpectedly. A task takes longer than you had planned.

Allow room for these “hiccups” because it might just be God guiding or planting seeds. Make room for interruptions. Make room for a friend who needs to talk something through or a family member who could use a bit of help. Those very things that pulled us away from our plans could be God’s plan to shine His light. It could be an opportunity to be Jesus’ hands and feet. 

Whatever you do, commit it to the Lord. Dedicate your work to the Lord. We are His vessels. We are His witnesses. God will establish our plans in a way that glorifies Him. There is far more that God may be doing behind the scenes in order to accomplish His work. He has eternity in mind. He can see the end of our story, the end of THE story. He can do far more with our simple everyday tasks than we could ever accomplish on our own. We will be a part of His grander scheme, things we cannot see behind the scenes.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado