God's BIG Plan!

A couple of springs ago we were blessed to be able to go to Paris, France on a dream trip. Monet has always been one of my favorite artists so I was thrilled to be able to see his original works. To my disappointment I was a little bit underwhelmed. When examined closely his paintings seemed a little sloppy to me. The colors were beautiful but his technique felt lacking…until...we were told that we were to back away from the paintings and take in the whole work. Monet's masterpieces were never meant to be closely examined but to be viewed from some distance allowing the viewer to take in the whole…not the details. It was only then that you could see the ebb and flow, the meshing of the colors, the design and the breathtaking beauty of his works. I think it must be a little like that for us when we try to consider God’s plan. We are living up close in our personal space…but God is smiling because what we view as a sloppy mess…He sees the whole of it…and it is beautiful. 

It might be a little like finding one piece of a thousand piece puzzle. One puzzle piece is  just this random mixture of colors that means nothing apart from the whole. God’s BIG plan is so much bigger than us. He designed His plan long before creation! The Word tells us even the angels were unaware. Prophets and kings of the Old Testament mention ‘the mystery’…they knew that God was planning something big…but what? Who really could have imagined it? God knew…always…He would create and we would destroy. He knew from the beginning He would hand pick a special group of people to create a bloodline for The King. He always knew He would become part of own His creation experiencing birth, life, and death. He knew His plan would never exclude anyone but included all…Israelites and Gentiles...everyone. 

God’s BIG plan has never been about just ME…but about saving the whole world. I am just a small piece of a magnificent puzzle designed by the creator Himself. But...here is the really exciting part…as long as this old world is spinning on its axis God’s plan is still evolving. The BIG Plan is not complete. More mysteries will be revealed when He returns…and takes us home with Him. Can you even imagine it? When that final puzzle piece is dropped into place…and we back up to absorb the majesty of His design. It will surely take our breath away as we fall on our knees with humility to be in the presence of our Lord, our King…our Father.

To know God's will for my life...first I must know HIM!

What is God's will for my life? Oh my...how many times have I pondered this question? How do I know what direction He wants me to go? Would God's plan disrupt my comfortable life? Have I missed it? Was there some really 'big' thing He wanted me to do and I missed the opportunity? Have I been sleep walking through life...going through the days not paying attention? Most days are not life changing...most days are just regular from the time the alarm goes off  to the end of the day routine...washing my face, brushing my teeth, making sure I have plenty of wrinkle cream slathered on before I climb into my comfortable bed and snuggle in for the night. Then the next the day...the alarm goes off...and the cycle begins again.

Some decisions have been life changing. Making the decision to marry my sweet Mustache Man was life changing. Choosing to change my major was life changing. Some decisions we make are eternity changing...and some are both. Choosing to live in God's will...means I must know HIM. How can I know what He wants without knowing Him?

Where does one even begin with God? The beginning? Where would that be? God has always been...always. Even before the first moment He chose to split the dark from the light He was. We know He existed in a spirit world with angels and heavenly hosts. It is impossible to even think about it too long...it is so mind bending. The Word even tells us He is beyond comprehension...and that He only shares what our human minds can absorb.

Here is just a smidgeon of what we know...

God is all knowing and ever present... 
Psalm 139 - You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.

God is beautiful and desirable...
Psalm 36 - Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the great deep. 

God is good and generous...
Psalm 34 - The righteous cry out and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. 

God is Holy...
Psalm 66 - Shout with joy to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious! ...All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to you, they sing praise to your name.

All God does is good...reverence for God is the beginning of wisdom

Psalm 111 - Praise the Lord

...Great are the works of the Lord;

they are pondered by all who delight in them.

 Glorious and majestic are His deeds, 

and His righteousness endures forever. 

He has caused His wonders to be remembered;

the Lord is gracious and compassionate. 

He provides food for those who fear Him;

He remembers his covenant forever.

He has shown his people the power of His works, 

giving them the lands of other nations.

The works of His hands are faithful and just;

all His precepts are trustworthy.

They are steadfast for ever and ever,

done in faithfulness and uprightness. 

He provided redemption for his people; 

He ordained his covenant forever-

Holy and awesome is His Name.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;

all who follow his precepts have good understanding. 

To HIM belongs eternal praise. 

What I have learned from Gideon...

God calls us when HE is ready. I will never be strong enough, good enough, or wise enough...but God is. He will decide what to do with me. With God I am enough.

God prepares me and uses my abilities. God used Gideon's quiet years in the cave to prepare his heart for leadership. He plunked a boy from a herd of sheep to teach him how to use a sling shot on predators...preparing him to slay a giant. Spiritual giants spent lots of quiet time in communion with their Lord. He placed a baby in a basket...in a river...to allow a young man to see up close and personal both sides of an Egyptian/Israelite struggle. He used a barn, a feed trough, and two wide eyed young people to provide for the birth of a King...a Savior for all humankind.  He prepares us for His use in the most unexpected ways. Don't ever underestimate what our God is planning for your life!

God uses the weak. God uses us in spite of our limitations. God uses us even when we fail. I am convinced that God loves surprises. What joy it must bring Him to see His weakest child overcome the strong. With God there are no limitations. Failure is only practice for getting it right...He lifts us up. He dusts us off and helps us straighten our shoulders. He emboldens us to try again...this time relying more on Him than ourselves. He rejoices when we get it right...knowing we have finally figured it out. We need HIM. He is our strength.

Finally, even the strong can fall...and they will without God. Over and over we see the Israelites slide back into sin. Sometimes when we read the Word we scratch our heads in wonder. Why didn't they get it? How dumb can you be? But...we are so much like them. The Evil One is never blatant. Evil never comes knocking boldly on your door announcing himself. He sneaks in. He pretends to be a friend. He is the giver of lovely gifts. He wraps lies in truth and confuses us. Without a continual walk wearing our spiritual armor we are exposed to the flaming arrows of Satan.

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. Ephesians 6:10

Flannel Flat Stanley going to war...

Do you remember when you were little in Sunday school and the teacher showed you the flannel story of the full armor of God? Standing in all the flannel glory was a figure simply clothed and as the teacher spoke of each piece of gear she begin to arm the flat Stanley for battle. I even remember buying a plastic armor at a Christian bookstore for my little youngster so he could fight righteous battles with pretend armor. I think we might have messed up!

Over and over in God's word he says to us...you don't need any of that stuff. I AM your armor. Of course, when a soldier is engaged in an earthly struggle with a physical enemy he needs his earthly body as protected as it can be. But in Judges when God is preparing Gideon for battle...He is the general. They have no need for battle gear. All they need is a horn and some pots. God just confuses the enemy around midnight with loud horns and breaking pots. God has no need for battle gear...he just asks for a trusting heart. Wasn't it the same with David? David in his tender youth was wise enough to know that he needed no heavy burdensome armor...that God was his protector. So...God provided a slingshot to slay an awkward near sighted giant. Moses found himself lacking in confidence so God just simply provided a staff...just a little something to hang on to like a security blanket. The power was never in the staff...

Our battles are spiritual battles. Our weapons are spiritual weapons. But it is impossible to go into a spiritual battle if I am weighed down with earthly stuff. I wonder if my waist is girded with the belt of gossip or rumors. What if I am wearing the breast plate of pettiness? Are my feet planted firmly with fear? Am I dragging around a shield of doubt? Do I wear a helmet of unbelief while I wave around a sword of man's counsel? Is my mind dull and wandering with thoughts of earthly things? If so, I will never be able to extinguish the flaming arrows of the evil one.

Perhaps we should return to our Flat Stanley flannel graph and flip our lesson. Begin with the soldier burdened with all his armor...and remove one piece at a time reminding children that we worship a HEAVENLY God. We are fighting in spiritual realms. We need to shed the heaviness of earthly armor to open our hearts and our minds to God. God wants his children to be armed with His Holiness...and that my friends lightens your load.



Ephesians 6:13-18 Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requiest. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.

What are they saying behind your back?

There is a little section about Gideon that I don't want to overlook. God tells Gideon that He will deliver the Midianites into his hands...but God realizes Gideon is still in need of a bit of encouragement....so He tells Gideon to take his servant Phurah, head on down and check out what the Midianites are saying. Now listen to this...the Bible gives us such imagery. The Bible says the Midianites and the Amalekites lay along the valley like grasshoppers for the multitudes, their camels were without number, as the sand by the sea. In plain Texas talk...there's a bunch of 'em! Now Gideon and a few of his boys are sneaking around listening...and he hears a Midianite fellow telling his buddy about a bad dream he had...and the buddy explains to him he must have been dreaming about Gideon, the son of Joash...remember the Asher pole....it earned puny Gideon a big bad reputation! They are scared to death of him. They are having nightmares about HIM. This is all Gideon needed...just that little push of encouragement to get him going. He stood up a little taller, puffed his chest out, and without hesitation said...Let's go get 'em, boys! (Texas style...I can't help myself)

We must never doubt the power of our words for good or for bad. As a teacher I witness often how the turn of a phrase or a tone can break a spirit. Encouraging words and words of affirmation can be so powerful...and plant a seed in a heart. Have you ever been walking by and overhead a conversation about you...they had no idea you were listening? Don't you lean in to hear a little better....holding your breath hoping it will be good? What if you hear something fabulous? Maybe someone exaggerates your abilities. Doesn't it just make you want to be as fabulous as they believe you are? So inside you are grinning from ear to ear...you stand a little taller...maybe you walk away whistling or humming a tune. You try a little harder...you want to be all they believe you can be!

Let's promise each other that we will be cheerleaders for one another. We will strive to be encouragers...believing in each other...expecting the best. Youngsters yearn for it. Middle schoolers (that weird age) are desperate to feel appreciated and noticed. High schoolers are hungry for adulthood....hungering for someone to recognize their strengths, their talents, their gifts, their possibilities. Young parents need to hear they are doing a lot right. Exhausted parents of teens need an encouraging word coupled with a pat on the back or hug. The elderly just want someone to be acknowledge they existed and achieved....somebody to remember they weren't always so wrinkled and slow. So when someone hears me talking about them behind their back....they should walk away...a little taller...with a lighter step and a song in their heart. From my mouth...never should be heard a discouraging word! (It's that Texas thang...)

Never take a knife to a gun fight...well, unless you have GOD!

The Midianites were camel-riding marauders. They were desert dwelling bullies...they had been kicking sand in the face of the Israelites for a while. They were scary...and there was a bunch of 'em! God was there for His chosen people once again...when they cried out to Him. He picked his weakest man from the weakest tribe to face the enemy. So Gideon (after some convincing) gathered the troops...a whopping thirty-two thousand! God...who never does anything we expect...tells Gideon that is just too many!

Why? Because if they defeat the Midianites...they will get all puffed up thinking THEY were the ones that defeated this army. THEY are only going to be victorious because of GOD. So...Gideon announces if anyone trembles with fear...go home. Twenty-two thousand leave! Good grief...talk about jumping ship. Down to ten thousand men now...Gideon is probably feeling worried but...sort of ok. Then God says...this is still too many. Uh...what?

Don't you see, Gideon? I'm fighting this battle for you. I AM your secret weapon. I'm just including you so you won't feel left out. You have a dog in this fight so you need to be IN the fight WITH ME. You have been invited to hang out with ME...GOD! This whole battle scene that I am about to reveal to you is on MY terms. I AM! I created each hair on each head...on both sides. I flooded the earth. I parted the Red Sea. I placed the stars and the moon in the sky. Your whole fleece object lesson was laughable! I created the fleece, the dew, YOU! I'm about to demonstrate my power to my people one more time...it will be another story you can tell your children. SO, Gideon...I don't really need any men...or you. But...I want you by MY side as we go into this "battle".

After separating the men who lap with their tongues when they drink water from their hands...this army is whittled down to three hundred men. Gideon then passes out trumpets and empty jars with torches inside. Just after the guard changed...Gideon's army led by God...blew their trumpets. THEN they just sat back and simply watched as the army of Midian fell into panic and confusion...killing each other and falling back into a disorderly retreat. Not one man had to draw a sword to defeat the enemy. When God is your general and He is planning the strategy...well, it is down right amazing.


My battles are not so exciting. But I wonder why I try so hard to go to battle alone...when I have a mighty God that will defeat the enemy for me? Why do I wait to call on Him? Why am I surprised when He shows up in the most unexpected ways? God doesn't need me to fight battles for Him...or for me. He is the great 
I AM. It is a relief really. It gives me a great deal of 
peace to know that He is my defender, my protector, 
my Father...and I need not be afraid.