Are We There Yet?

A father and his young son get into the family car and head off on a Saturday adventure. The destination is unknown to the little boy but his father has had this trip planned for weeks. You see, the little boy loves trains and his father was taking him to a real train station where he arranged for his son to meet an engineer and ride up front in the train. As the trip progresses the young boy finds himself filled with the never-ending desire that all children possess when traveling for a long car ride; he wants to know when they will arrive at their destination.

As anticipation builds, the dad begins facing an onslaught of questions, "Are we there yet? How much longer? What will we do when we get there?" The father, who is glad to see his son so excited, does his best to remain patient through the barrage of questions. Finally the son's father asks, "Why are you so excited, you don't even know where we are going?" In an innocent tone the little boy says, "Because daddy, you told me how great it is going to be!"

Jeremiah 29:11 says "For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." God has a plan for each of us that is so much better than anything we could imagine on our own. His Word plainly states this truth yet most of the time we fail to acknowledge it not to mention get excited about it. Just as the father in the story had been planning the Saturday trip for weeks, God has had a plan for you since the beginning of time.

You see, the little boy could have been disappointed. He could have had his Saturday planned full of cartoon watching and playing with his toy trains. The thought of riding on a real train was the furthest thing from his mind because he didn't even think it was a possibility. Instead, he trusted his father and undoubtedly had a far better Saturday than he would have had following his own plan.

We all have plans for the future whether it be for tomorrow, next week, next year or even the dreaded five-year plan. I encourage you to throw caution to the wind, give up on your own plan and embrace the plan your Heavenly Father has for you. Don't get me wrong, being prepared is never a bad thing, but I am talking about sacrificing what you think is best and surrendering to God's plan. Sure, you can go through life following your own plan and maybe do alright. Or you can strive to know God more and more and walk according to His plan and experience more than you ever thought possible.

-Erik