Reassurance For When Our Plans Change

I write a daily to-do list. This keeps me on track with the tasks I need to complete, especially those requiring a deadline. But even as I write my list, I know unexpected stuff will happen and I won’t be able to strike everything from it at day’s end.

Inevitably someone phones or drops by the house. My husband asks me to edit an email or a newsletter he’s written for our ministry. We hear of somebody—a relative or friend or ministry supporter—who needs help in a practical way, and we feel it’s right to offer our assistance.

Jesus has my calendar

I used to feel frustrated when stuff like this happened, but not so much anymore. Giving Jesus full access to my calendar has helped lessen the stress.

So has beginning my day with a simple prayer such as, “Father, this is the day You have made. I will rejoice and be glad in it. Help me use time wisely and complete those tasks You want me to do, and help me rest rather than stress with what’s left at the end of the day.”

“We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps,” says Proverbs 16:9.

When Jesus lives in us, our iCal is His iCal. We can either grip it in a clenched fist and refuse Him access, or we can willingly share it with Him and trust Him to make changes as He wishes.

The same goes for the big picture of our lives. We talk about life taking unexpected detours, but really—there’s no such thing as a detour if the Lord is the One determining our steps. An unexpected change of direction is a surprise to us, not Him. We make our plans, but He determines our steps.

This truth leaves me feeling peaceful. It leaves me feeling confident that Jesus will guide me moment by moment through every day and through the larger scope of my life.