Every morning I sit here and study God’s Word. I dive in and then share my thoughts through this media. I never would have thought this that began as a simple accountability exercise would be in its 5^th year and shared world-wide. My private thoughts and study are now for the world to see, what a public statement.

But, what about away from this media and outside the time that I sit and study God’s Word. Am I devoting my public self to God and the spread of the Gospel as I am here in private?

“¹³Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. ¹⁴Do not neglect the gift you have, which was give you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you. ¹⁵Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress. ¹⁶Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.” – 1 Timothy 4:13-16 (ESV)

I may be selfish with my proclamations of the Gospel. I may be keeping everything bottled into my morning private time with the thoughts that I am somehow being public. It is up to me to be more open at all times with my sharing and not just in the private of my home and on Sunday mornings in the church. It is time to be more outward in my faith and share with all, the glory that God has given me. It is time for me to share with all who I am and what God has tasked me. I have to take the time to “practice these things” and “persist” to “save both yourself and your hearers”.

Paul makes it clear to Timothy the actions he is to be taking in his ministry and I have to take my cues from Paul’s words to Timothy. I have to practice and persist in all that I do to bring the Gospel to all every chance I can. Both in my private times and public self I am to be all that God has in store for me.

What does your private look like compared to your public? What is it that all can see? What if you were to be as bold in public as you are in private, practicing and persisting to bring the gospel?

The verses I was led to this morning are titled “Principles for Marriage”. Whereas the verses open on the physical relationship between husband and wife, the principle I was brought to relates to devotion to one another.

“⁵Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer, but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.” – 1 Corinthians 7:5 (ESV)

In our relationship with our spouse, are to be devoted to one another so much that nothing separates us, except that time we are devoting to God. That time is for God and we I am devoted to Him in prayer, temptations of the world are left outside. I am not subjected to the world as my attention is on God and in pleasing, praising, and glorifying Him.

When I am not in commune with God, I must be devoted to Lori. I must be with her and beside her as often as I can to stave off the temptations of the world. When focused on my wife, how can I be tempted by others or things of the world. Together we are stronger and will be the accountability partners needed.

“¹⁸For where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am among them.” – Matthew 18:20 (ESV)

I and my wife Lori are together and as stated my Jesus above, He is with us. And with Jesus with us, Satan cannot reach us. The temptations of the world are around us, but with our focus on God and each other, we are protected.

What about your devotion, where does it lie? Are you devoted to one another? What if your devotion to one another was so strong and only deviated from to devote to God in prayer?

As a child of God, it is my duty to fulfill the work that God has in store for me. I am there to do His work and I should be devoting my time to His work and not the work that I think is what God wants of me and my time.

“²And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, ‘It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables, ³therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. ⁴But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.’” – Acts 6:2-4 (ESV)

These verses are eye opening to me in that busy work in the name of God, may not be the work He has in store for me. Just like the 12 apostles, they were doing great work by serving meals to those in need. They were doing good work in the name of God. They were staying busy with the work, but soon realized that may not be the plan God had in store for them. They took the opportunity to offload, or delegate the work to others that were suited for that at the time and returned to the work they were tasked with by Jesus in Matthew 28:

“¹⁹Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” – Matthew 28:19-20 (ESV)

I have tasks that God has planned out for me and it is my duty to fulfill those tasks. I must devote myself to those tasks and in doing so, will be glorifying God all along the way.

I may not fully know what those tasks are, and that is the reason to dive in feet first and do the work in the name of God. As I am doing the work of God, I must remain in prayer and study to find my full purpose and as my relationship with God grows, so will my view of the tasks He has in store for me. I am to be in communication with Him at all times seeking to devote myself where He would have me.

What is your plan for the work you are doing for God? Are you constantly moving about doing more and more? What if you were to find that one place through prayer and study where you could devote to Him?

“²⁵Have you not heard that I determined it long ago? I planned from days of old what now I bring to pass that you should turn fortified cities into heaps of ruins,” – 2 Kings 19:25 (ESV)

And upon hearing this, I am overjoyed at God’s plan. I will be an overwhelming, resounding success and no one will be getting in my way that I will not conquer. My head is swelling and I am reaching god status thanks to God.

But, that is only the beginning of the plan as I will soon find out, not that I am told, but due to my arrogance, I am blinded by what I see as the end result.

“³²Therefore this says the LORD concerning the kin of Assyria: He shall not come into this city or shoot an arrow there, or come before it with a shield or cast up a siege mound against it. ³³By the way that he came, by the same he shall return, and he shall not come into this city, declares the LORD. ³⁴For I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David.” – 2 Kings 19:32-34 (ESV)

What a turn of events. I was granted all the power to conquer “fortified cities” and now I am not going to be able to take the city of Jerusalem? But I was told, and there was this plan?

The thing I take away here is that God’s plans are more intricate that we could ever imagine. He knows our heart and therefore knows the ultimate outcome, whereas we are only able to see that which is in front of us and that He allows us to see in the moment. I have to remember that God is leading the plan and I am but just a part of that plan set to do the work He has for me. I may feel as though I understand, but God’s plans are not always what they seem. He gives us just enough to accomplish the part in that moment and once we have, we move on to the next with the full goal of pleasing and glorifying Him at every turn. When we do, the plan as we see it will become clearing as we go and we will realize the ultimate goal and result of God’s plan when we arrive.

How have your plans not finished the way you thought they would? What thoughts have you given to how the plan started and how you arrived at the finish? What if you just took on your part of God’s plan as opposed to believing you know where He is going or taking you?

You read that right. God’s plan has been in the works for thousands of years. It all began prior to the creation and is still playing out today. Talk about waiting for and letting things develop over time, it has been over 2000 years just on this side of the birth of Jesus Christ. And, there is no way for us to know when His plan will be fully complete, so it could continue for thousands of years longer, or not.

“⁷In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, ⁸which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight ⁹making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ ¹⁰as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.” – Ephesians 1:7-10 (ESV)

There is so much to unpack in those verses, but where my eyes were brought this morning is in verse 10 and the plan set in place “for the fullness of time”. This is where I must hang my hat to know that God’s plan is ultimate and we are just working in that plan until it is completed. That completion time is unknown, although once all is united “in Him” it will be done.

In the world we are a part of, there seems to be this desire to have all things “right now” and as such, the satisfaction of receiving is lost. Thinking of Christmas time and how often is it that the gift given is thrown to the side because the newer version launches the next week. Or the promotion received at work is received after the third month on the job and the satisfaction is lost the next week when the next promotion is seen to be years away.

I have the privilege of serving God at a church plant in Boerne, Texas. As the church is less than one year old, the growth has been phenomenal thanks to God. As it goes, I was able to have a great lunch with our pastor a bit ago and was blessed to appreciate the satisfaction of that growth and hear it in Jared’s words. He was overjoyed with the growth, and quick to indicate that in spite of that growth, the approach to the vision would remain slow so as to improve the depth discipleship of every member of the church and the community we serve. The alignment to God’s plan is amazing.

If God can have a plan in the works for millennia, I believe a plans for me that take 10 years or so is not so out of the question and should be something that I strive for. I have to remember that it is the plan and the journey more so than just reaching the end that will bring the satisfaction, peace, and joy to me and more importantly to God.

Where is your focus on satisfaction, the end result, or the journey? How much satisfaction, peace, and joy are you getting at the end result? What if you were to have a plan that is in the works for tens of years instead of tens of days?

Ever go into something without a real plan, you just show up and expect everything to go as you want it to or thought is should? Well, that is something that God does not do, nor will or has He ever experienced.

“²²Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that god did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know—²³this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.” – Acts 2:22-23 (ESV)

Imagine that, God sent Jesus, knowing full well what was in store for Him. He was delivered to this world for our good, not His own. He was then presented and charged, not for doing anything wrong, but for being who He was. He was crucified (killed or murdered if you will) for just being Jesus, even when found not to have done anything wrong. And God allowed it to happen as a part of his definite plan.

Now, when God has such a plan of death for His only son in the flesh, wouldn’t it make sense that He has a definite plan for me. His plan for Jesus was death so that I would not have to die, wouldn’t His plan for me then be life to spread the gospel of that death. And wouldn’t He protect me and provide for me as a part of that plan so that it will be carried out to the full extent and completion.

God had a definite plan for Jesus and He has a definite plan for me. My job is to seek out that plan and always to be moving forward in that plan. I may not always know what is in store around the next bend as I carry out God’s plan, but my task is to go anyway and know that God’s definite plan is in the works and that plan includes me.

Are you aware that God’s plan is currently in the works? Where do you fit into that plan? What if you simply did the work God has for you and know that it is all part of His definite plan?

Something I have been struggling with for quite a while now is finding difficulty at every turn doing my work at the office. I seem to be running into more and more challenges with getting things accomplished efficiently and with high quality based on what I am not in control.

“²⁰Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil, but those who plan peace have joy. ²¹No ill befalls the righteous, but the wicked are filled with trouble.” – Proverbs 12:20-21 (ESV)

I am a planner and like to think that I have contingency plans for the contingency plans in place. This gives me the ability to make the adjustments and work to get things right as opposed to just getting them done. The difficulty I have encountered for this while is that I may have contingencies, however it appears as though everyone else reacts to what is happening and works to make things up on the fly.

As I read this morning in Proverbs as I continue my study of the word “plan”, these verses stood out to me as medicine for my aches and pains at the office. I have to remember that planning for peace is the way to joy. I have to look for the good and positive in my situation and stop looking for what will go wrong. It is not my inefficiency that is causing my difficulty and therefore I must remember that I have planned for peace and joy will follow. The more I know that I have done all that I can do, the more that I will find the peace to walk away from the situations knowing that the plans I had, that were in line with the plans God has for me, were fulfilled. As those plans are fulfilled, I will find more joy and trouble will fall to the side.

What difficulties are you experiencing? What plans did you make to find peace? What could you do to make sure that the joy is found from peace as opposed to the trouble encountered with lack of planning?

Most of us have neighbors that are relatively close to us, whether in proximity, or relational. As such, it is up to us to do good by them and not plan or plat any evil toward them.

“²⁹Do not plan evil against your neighbor, who dwells trustingly beside you.” – Proverbs 3:29 (ESV)

I know, when I read this verse, I think about whether I do plan against my neighbors. Do I look for ways of doing them harm? But that is just the beginning of planning with regard to my neighbor. I don’t plan out ways to “harm” those close to me. But, do I always do good and right by them?

“²⁷Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it. ²⁸Do not say to your neighbor, ‘Go, and come again, tomorrow I will give it’–when you have it with you. ³⁰Do not contend with a man for no reason, when he has done you no harm.” – Proverbs 3:27-28 & 30 (ESV)

I am guilty of not always being generous with my neighbor when they ask. I have made excuses and then avoided them for the sake of not helping out. I did not seek out to harm, but by not offering my assistance in their time of need, I caused harm to them anyway. Now I am not saying that I consciously and always take that action, but I have done it in the past and for that I am as guilty as seeking to harm them in some way.

It is up to me not to take any action that might harm my neighbors, whether in proximity or relational. I have to be the better person and work to be the light of Christ that they are able to see daily. I have to put others before me and allow God to do His work in their lives and through me. I cannot be harmful to them by either intention or omission, for each are of the same negative value to them. I have to plan to do good by my neighbors.

When it comes to others, what plans do you make to help or not harm them? Are you willing to put others before yourself in the name of Christ? What would it be like if you planned to do good by your neighbors?

I am sure that most of us have heard the statement, “You get what you pay for”. In other words, if you want quality, it comes at a premium. Well, I read this morning and was reminded that you get what you plan for as well.

I have been studying the word “plans” and was led this morning to Isaiah 32.

“⁶For the fool speaks folly, and his heart is busy with iniquity, to practice ungodliness, to utter error concerning the LORD, to leave the craving of the hungry unsatisfied, and to deprive the thirsty of drink. ⁷As for the scoundrel—his devices are evil; he plans wicked schemes to ruin the poor with lying words, even when the plea of the needy is right. ⁸But he who is noble plans noble things, and on noble things he stands.” – Isaiah 32:6-8 (ESV)

In the verses above, I see that each of those described actually plan. And each of them will get what they plan for. Whether ungodliness, evil, or noble things, that which is planned and focused will be accomplished.

As a follower of Christ, I choose to do those things that are glorifying and pleasing to God and as such should be planning those things out. Like, my morning Bible study and sharing of my thoughts. I plan for this each and every weekday, whether here in the comfort of my home or when traveling. I bring with me all I need to continue learning and growing in my walk with Christ.

I believe that people as a whole do not plan to do thing that are not pleasing to God, but what I do believe that people do not plan to do things that are. Without the planning of things that are pleasing to God, the likelihood of those things happening are limited, as I come back to the title of my thoughts here; “You Get What You Plan For”.

When you begin your day or week, what are you planning for? What plans can you make to be pleasing to God? What if you took the approach that you get what you plan for?

I am one of those planners. The one that maps out the route before leaving. The one that keeps a list so as not to forget something. The one that asks for help when something is not making sense. And as a planner, I feel as though I am prepared for things that may come up that to others may seem a catastrophe, but for me is just a deviation from the original plan.

How do I get there, I take the time in the beginning to work as much out as possible to be sure that the big stones I see get turned over to see what is lurking underneath. To a good number of those around me, I am perceived as overly analytical and thinking too much where they are more in the doer phase and take things as they come. Mine and their approach may be different, and we may reach the finish line at roughly the same time, the energy expended and needed are drastically different, not to mention the continuity of the plan itself.

“¹⁸Plans are established by counsel; by wise guidance wage war. ²¹And inheritance gained hastily in the beginning will not be blessed in the end.” – Proverbs 20:18 & 21 (ESV)

God performs His work in His time and as I have been a part of, that time is much slower than I really like. Whereas I am a planner and prefer to take things slow with all of the information I can gather, God goes even slower. I get so frustrated when things are not proceeding as I have planned and the waiting on God is really tough.

But, what I have also found is that when God’s plan is finally realized and completed, things work out for the absolute best, every time. He knows how much each of us can take on and just how long we can wait on Him. Our job is to work with Him on those plans to relieve the stress of what to do next in our plan. When we do the work up front and prepare properly with the counsel of God and take our time as God does, won’t our plans work out, every time? Our best plans are those that are worked out and take time to fully develop.

What is your approach to tasks of the day? What planning are you doing around those things in your life? What if you were to take the time to work it out ahead of time and align with God?