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We can make our own plans, but the LORD gives the right answer.
Proverbs 16:1 (NLT)

Our Resting at the River’s Edge reading for Monday, June 10 is Proverbs 16. I’m a day ahead, but have to share my reading because it is a perfect message to take us into the weekend. Of course, it’s also a perfect message for a Monday, so I’m a bit torn — should I write it and schedule it to post on Monday. Nah…I’m too excited about it today so I’m sharing a bit early. Perhaps God can use it to help us shape our weekend, and then remind us of it on Monday to help us shape our week.

As I woke up this morning, I began making my plans for the day and weekend. You see, we’re behind (aren’t we always – aren’t you always behind in something? Everything?)…My biggest concern right now is that we don’t have our garden in yet (and all of a sudden it’s the end of the first week of June). It seems that the days we could have planted we were too busy with other priorities and the days we had time to plant the weather said “Nope, not gonna let you do it today.” So I woke up, trying to balance my work, ministry and social commitments for today through Sunday with the need to garden. I decided not to take a shower (don’t worry, I work from home) hoping I might be able to sneak in an hour of gardening during lunch. (That’s never happened before, but one can always hope.)

I came downstairs and got my breakfast, then came further downstairs to the basement and sat at my desk to begin my day. I opened my Bible reading program on my computer (I use WordSearch 10), and turned to my next scheduled reading. I noticed the Post-It I put on my monitor last night to remind me of my first work task this morning. I glanced at the time and recognize that I’m running a little late.

Then I began to read. Did you notice that it doesn’t say anywhere in there that I prayed first? I confess. I didn’t. I always try to remember to pray in the morning – often before I get out of bed or when I take a shower. Didn’t happen. I always try to remember to pray in the morning before I begin reading God’s Word. Didn’t happen. I share that just to let you know that we all get it wrong sometimes. I’m not beating myself up about it. I’m thanking God for His goodness to me even when I forget to invite Him in. I’ve apologized to God (which is a whole lot like confessing my sin to Him), and know that I’m forgiven.

Back to the reading. I love God’s Word. Here are 6 of the 33 verses in Proverbs 16:

¹We can make our own plans, but the LORD gives the right answer.
²People may be pure in their own eyes, but the LORD examines their motives.
³Commit your actions to the LORD, and your plans will succeed.

⁹We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps.

²⁵There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.

³³We may throw the dice, but the LORD determines how they fall.
Proverbs 16:1-33 (NLT)

God is so gracious to remind me – especially when my mind begins to go a bit haywire from the tasks I want to put in my schedule – that I can make all the plans I want, but He will give me the right answers and He will cause them to succeed, and He will determine my steps and He will determine the end results.

The rest of the Proverb is filled with direction on how we should live – fearing God, in humility, in Godliness, honestly, in peace, listening to instructions, with patience and much more. All good stuff to hear, read and live.

Whether you’re reading this before the weekend, at the beginning of the week, or even in the middle of the week – let God make your plans!

This entry was posted on Friday, June 7th, 2013 at 9:11 am and is filed under Christian Living, Our Priorities, Trusting God. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.