When God Has a Plan by Betty Badgett

WHEN   GOD   HAS   A   PLAN

 As a child growing up in a single parent home, I recall hearing my mother say, “God always has a plan, and if you want to make him laugh, just tell him yours.”  I wasn’t exactly sure what that meant at that time, but as the years have passed, I’ve come to understand the meaning of that.

There were so many things in my life that I thought I was in total control of, sometimes they worked out the way I wanted them too, and sometimes they didn’t work out at all or perhaps in ways that I could never have imagined.

Finally, I realized that there is a higher power that I have to answer too and not the other way around.  God is not sitting some place high in the sky waiting for my to do list, telling Him what I wanted, when I wanted it and how

I expected it to show up in my life. 

Four years ago, the doctors found a tumor on my husband’s colon.  He underwent surgery to remove the tumor.  He was cancer free for one year.  I had prayed, and asked God for a miracle.  I got it!!  Just as I had asked.  But then a year later, it had returned on his liver and I was devastated.  What happened?  I had prayed, told God what I wanted and waited patiently for Him to give me what I asked for.  He did, and I was thankful, but now what?  I felt that God had answered my prayer but now He had changed His mind, and said no to the miracle

I had prayed for.

My husband underwent a total of four rounds of chemo, but this time, nothing was responding as I had hoped and prayed.  A year and a half went by and he was placed on hospice, as there was nothing else that could be done.

One night while sitting at my husband’s bedside, I totally surrendered my plans to God.  No more lists of things I wanted and expected of Him.  No longer was I going to expect God to work according to my plans. I began to pray differently.

       Dear God,

       I surrender everything to you, including my life and my husband’s life. I have no control over his life or mine.  “Not as I will, but as Thy will”.

Where had I heard those words before? 

In August of 2014, God took him home to be with him. I never say he died of cancer, because that would give cancer too much control. God had a plan, and His will was done. 

God always has a plan for our lives.  We may not understand it, or even agree with it, we just have to remember who’s in charge of our lives and submit to his will.

PROVERBS 16 verse 9:

       “A mans heart plans his way,

          But the Lord directs his steps.”