Have you ever heard those commercials for some migraine medication, which states that if you are living with chronic migraines, then you are living a “maybe life”? For the life of me I can’t think what the specific medication being advertised was, but the brand name isn’t what’s important here. When you really think about it, what does living a “maybe life” really mean? Not being fully involved in your own life? Or maybe, not feeling fulfilled by what you are currently doing? I’m sure in the case of this advertisement a “maybe life” refers to living in pain brought on my migraines, which in turn keeps you from being fully involved in your own life.
Yesterday as I was reading my daily portion of scripture something occurred to me. I am living a “maybe life”. Not because I have chronic migraines, but because I am not living a life of true faith. I like to think that I am, but deep down inside I know that I am not. Deep down I secretly like to be in control. To have a plan. To know what is going to happen all the time, and to live my life according to this ”plan”. When I am unable to make a plan, or don’t have a good idea about what I will be doing in the future, I feel uneasy and frustrated. I wish I could honestly say that I am spontaneous, because the idea of truly “going with the flow” and not having a set plan is very appealing to me, but that is just not who I am. Unfortunately. Don’t get me wrong—sometimes having a plan is very important, and necessary to get things accomplished in life and to stay on track. However, God requires us to live by faith, and not by sight. He doesn’t really care about my little plan, because in the end His is much bigger and better then anything I could have come up with on my own.
Thank goodness—because my plans usually aren’t that great in the grander scheme of things.
He wants us to put our faith in Him and trust that He has a plan and a purpose for everything that happens in life, even if sometimes it doesn’t seem like it. Those times where it is hard for us to see what He could possibly be planning for the circumstances in which we are living are the times when we need to trust Him the most. I know, I know it’s really hard. Trust me. It’s hard to let go and let God do His thing, especially coming from a person who likes to be in control and have a plan at all times. I need to get better at learning how to relinquish that control, and give it all to God. Only then will I be able to live a full and complete life; not a “maybe” life.
If we don’t let go, then we will never reach our full potential, or realize our true calling, We will be stuck living a “maybe life” for the rest of our lives—knowing that something is missing, but not being able to figure out what it is no matter how hard we try. We can’t do it on our own—we need to let go and let God lead our lives instead of ourselves.
Back to yesterday’s daily portion of scripture—I was reading about Sarah and Abraham, and how God promised them a child, even though they were both old and Sarah was well passed her childbearing years (she was nearly 100!). They didn’t think that God could fulfill His promise through Sarah, so she told Abraham to have a child with her maidservant Hagar, who was much younger. They made their OWN plan because they didn’t trust that God’s plan was going to work in their situation. Being the planner that I am, I can just imagine what Sarah must have been thinking. She was probably feeling discouraged because she knew how impossible it was for her to bear her own child. I’m sure she felt scared, and I’m sure she felt how impossible the situation was for her. So impossible that she decided she needed to form her own plan in order to accomplish what God had promised. However, God had promised them a child through Sarah, and as we know nothing is impossible for God and His plan. Eventually, Sarah and Abraham had a child together just as God had promised them. Go figure. Through this process, Sarah went from living a “maybe” life to a life of faith and trust.
Can you imagine how you would feel after going through such an impossible situation as Sarah went through? One word I can think of would be overwhelmed. Overwhelmed with gratitude, but also with faith and trust in God and His perfect plan. When Sarah let go, and let God work His plan in her life, she was blessed with a child, just as He had promised. See what happens when we have enough faith to let go of our own plans? Imagine what could happen in your own life.
What do you need to let go of today, so that God’s plan can be manifested in your life tomorrow?
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