God is Working Out "His Plan"
...for the choir devotional book by Janice Lee
It was December 26, 2005. I was driving south on I-26, oops it runs east & west….then I guess I was driving east, headed home after spending Christmas Day & evening with my family and a Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir Christmas musical was playing. My mind was full of thoughts and my heart full of emotions from the past 48 hours, but I was quite preoccupied with our “journey” with Pastor Scott.
We, individually and as a church, had prayed for his healing. Maybe it was a selfish prayer on our part, but we didn’t want to lose him – I know I didn’t. Some had even questioned if we had enough faith when we prayed. My heart was breaking – for me, for the church, and especially for Vicky, Candi & Melody. Alone in the car, I asked God if Christmas Day had been the last time we’d see Pastor Scott as our pastor. I asked what was ahead for us…..and suddenly I heard the words being sung on the CD: “God is working out His plan. Ev’ry promise He fulfills, all according to His will…” You {may} know the rest of the words. I listened to the rest of the song and replayed 3 or 4 times back to back.
Have you noticed that the first chorus is written in past tense and the second is present tense? While listening the 3rd or 4th time I did, and a wonderful peace and calm flooded my heart as tears flooded my eyes. I was reminded that God has a perfect plan. Nothing stopped it that first Christmas, nothing stopped it that first Easter, and nothing can stop it 21 centuries later. I’ve since been reminded that “perfect” usually means “complete or fulfilled”, not “ideal”, when we see it in scripture. As we seek God and His (perfect) plan for us individually we will encounter both joy and pain along the way. But we must remember He has promised we will find Him, and that He will sustain and protect us along the way.
God’s message through Isaiah (46:9-11): “I am God, and there is none like me…My purpose will stand…What I have said, that will I bring about; what I have planned that will I do.”
It was December 26, 2005. I was driving south on I-26, oops it runs east & west….then I guess I was driving east, headed home after spending Christmas Day & evening with my family and a Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir Christmas musical was playing. My mind was full of thoughts and my heart full of emotions from the past 48 hours, but I was quite preoccupied with our “journey” with Pastor Scott.
We, individually and as a church, had prayed for his healing. Maybe it was a selfish prayer on our part, but we didn’t want to lose him – I know I didn’t. Some had even questioned if we had enough faith when we prayed. My heart was breaking – for me, for the church, and especially for Vicky, Candi & Melody. Alone in the car, I asked God if Christmas Day had been the last time we’d see Pastor Scott as our pastor. I asked what was ahead for us…..and suddenly I heard the words being sung on the CD: “God is working out His plan. Ev’ry promise He fulfills, all according to His will…” You {may} know the rest of the words. I listened to the rest of the song and replayed 3 or 4 times back to back.
Have you noticed that the first chorus is written in past tense and the second is present tense? While listening the 3rd or 4th time I did, and a wonderful peace and calm flooded my heart as tears flooded my eyes. I was reminded that God has a perfect plan. Nothing stopped it that first Christmas, nothing stopped it that first Easter, and nothing can stop it 21 centuries later. I’ve since been reminded that “perfect” usually means “complete or fulfilled”, not “ideal”, when we see it in scripture. As we seek God and His (perfect) plan for us individually we will encounter both joy and pain along the way. But we must remember He has promised we will find Him, and that He will sustain and protect us along the way.
God’s message through Isaiah (46:9-11): “I am God, and there is none like me…My purpose will stand…What I have said, that will I bring about; what I have planned that will I do.”
David said it all: I saw God before me for all time. Nothing can shake me; He's right by my side. I'm glad from the inside out, ecstatic; I've pitched my tent in the Land of Hope. I know You'll never dump me in Hades; I'll never even smell the stench of death. You've got my feet on the life-path, with Your face shining sun-joy all around.
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