I was recently blessed with the opportunity to manage a larger territory at work and it required me to create Excel spreadsheets to thoroughly lay out the information I needed to know about each account I would be working with. It took me hours to manually go through transferring all of the information I needed to know about each account to a new spreadsheet. Once I finished, I asked one of my managers to meet with me and help me with excel. When we met, my manager told me that he wished I would have requested to meet with him sooner because all of the work I manually did transferring information could have been done in 5 minutes by simply using formulas in Excel. He then took his time patiently walking me through how to create formulas and teaching me new terminology that I was unfamiliar with.
Reflecting, I realized that when it comes to finishing things that I have planned to do, I sometimes have a habit of locking in my mind the set steps I will take to get something done. By doing this at work I actually ended up delaying myself and made my job a lot harder than it had to be. When my boss revealed to me that there was an easier way to get things done that he could have shown me if I had asked for help, it made me think about the countless times I had done the very same thing to God.
Reflecting, I realized that when it comes to finishing things that I have planned to do, I sometimes have a habit of locking in my mind the set steps I will take to get something done. By doing this at work I actually ended up delaying myself and made my job a lot harder than it had to be. When my boss revealed to me that there was an easier way to get things done that he could have shown me if I had asked for help, it made me think about the countless times I had done the very same thing to God.
How many of us have been guilty of locking in our minds the set steps we want to take to complete a plan that we have? Think about the mother who plans to take her child to school and pick them up after work, but her child ends up sick and has to leave school early so she finds herself frustrated that her steps to complete her plan have been derailed by an unexpected circumstance. Think about the college student who planned on going to school and getting their degree in four years but their program ends up taking them five years to complete so they have to re-plan their steps. Think about the couple who planned on getting married but hard times hit and they may no longer afford to get married the way they initially thought they would.
I believe that this month, God wants us to stop locking in on our own set ways of the steps we will take to complete our plans. In the bible there is a scripture in Proverbs 16:9 NIV that says, “we can make our own plans, but the Lord determines our steps”. The moment we lock in on our own set way of doing things, it has the ability to delay our process, exhaust us, frustrate us, and more importantly steer us away from the direction/steps that God wants us to take in following our divine plans. This month, allow God to “instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; let Him counsel you with His loving eye on you” (Psalm 32:8 NIV). If you seek His will and seek His way, the Lord will direct you every step along the way.
I believe that this month, God wants us to stop locking in on our own set ways of the steps we will take to complete our plans. In the bible there is a scripture in Proverbs 16:9 NIV that says, “we can make our own plans, but the Lord determines our steps”. The moment we lock in on our own set way of doing things, it has the ability to delay our process, exhaust us, frustrate us, and more importantly steer us away from the direction/steps that God wants us to take in following our divine plans. This month, allow God to “instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; let Him counsel you with His loving eye on you” (Psalm 32:8 NIV). If you seek His will and seek His way, the Lord will direct you every step along the way.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father,
We give you glory! Hallelujah to the God who reigns. Hallelujah to our king. Hallelujah to the one who carried us through the first month of the year and brought us into the second month. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! We honor you. We give you praise. We shower you with our love. Thank you for being who you are. Thank you for your unconditional love. Thank you for your persistence. Thank you for never giving up on us. We thank you, we thank you, we thank you Lord, for everything. Wash away our impurities and create in us a pure heart oh God renewing a steadfast spirit within us that keeps us aligned with your will, connected to our purpose, and desperate for more of you. We cancel worry, doubt, fear, anxiety, and anything else that may try to hinder us from surrendering our lives to you. Release your holy spirit over our minds, release your holy spirit over our hearts, release your holy spirit over our tongues, release your holy spirit over our actions, and release your holy spirit over our plans. Direct and instruct us in the ways we should go to complete our plans. Bless us with wisdom, patience, discernment and peace. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.
Heavenly Father,
We give you glory! Hallelujah to the God who reigns. Hallelujah to our king. Hallelujah to the one who carried us through the first month of the year and brought us into the second month. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! We honor you. We give you praise. We shower you with our love. Thank you for being who you are. Thank you for your unconditional love. Thank you for your persistence. Thank you for never giving up on us. We thank you, we thank you, we thank you Lord, for everything. Wash away our impurities and create in us a pure heart oh God renewing a steadfast spirit within us that keeps us aligned with your will, connected to our purpose, and desperate for more of you. We cancel worry, doubt, fear, anxiety, and anything else that may try to hinder us from surrendering our lives to you. Release your holy spirit over our minds, release your holy spirit over our hearts, release your holy spirit over our tongues, release your holy spirit over our actions, and release your holy spirit over our plans. Direct and instruct us in the ways we should go to complete our plans. Bless us with wisdom, patience, discernment and peace. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.