Trusting God's Path For Me!

How many of us can say far life has turned out just like we expected it would? Probably not very many of us. However, many of us can say life has turned out better than we expected! Early in our lives we develop dreams and expectations for the future. Some of those dreams will come true but some will change along the way. No matter what happens with regard to our dreams and expectations we must always remember WHO is in control...God! Looking back at the Old Testament, I think it's pretty safe to assume Joseph didn't expect to be: sold into slavery (by his very own brothers), taken from a jail cell to the throne room in order to interpret Pharaoh's dreams or become a very powerful man at the right hand of Pharaoh himself! No, this was not what he expected to happen! We can all learn a very important lesson from Joseph! Joseph didn't let the fact that his life took a different than expected course throw him off track. He made the most of those disappointments and learned from them - and look where God took him!

One of my favorite verses is Proverbs 16:9 "In His heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps." This is such a good reminder to all of us! God knows that we have dreams and plans for our life and he allows us to keep those in our heart. However, since we are dependent on Him, He is the one who will direct our steps. The best example I have of this in my life is my long journey through singlehood. I had dreams of being married at the age of 25 or at least 27. But God had other plans for me, and I'm so thankful I allowed him to determine my steps or I would have missed out on the man I married 6 months ago! During this time, I didn't always understand the direction my life was going and often times I did become discouraged. But through prayer and patience God taught me many valuable lessons on that path. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6. God is God and we are not, He is the one making our paths just what they should be!

Kim