Acceptance with Joy: Trading Our Plans for God's Gifts #RTTBROS #Nightlight
"In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you." - 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (KJV)
I've been thinking lately about something C.S. Lewis once wrote: "We are not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be." That really gets to the heart of it, doesn't it?
We spend so much energy gripping tightly to our plans, our expectations, our vision of how life should unfold. We clutch them like precious treasures, afraid to let go. But here's what I've learned through my years of stumbling around this life: sometimes God's got something better in His hands, and we can't receive it until we open ours.
I remember when my ministry path took an unexpected turn. I had it all mapped out, where I'd serve, how things would grow, what success would look like. When doors started closing instead of opening, I fought it hard. I held onto my plans with white knuckles, wondering why God wasn't getting with my program.
But you know what happened when I finally loosened my grip? When I stopped wrestling with what wasn't and started accepting what was? I discovered gifts I never knew God had waiting for me. Opportunities to serve I'd never imagined. People to love and learn from that weren't in my original blueprint.
Paul says to give thanks "in every thing," not just the good things, but in everything. That's a tall order for folks like us who like our ducks in a row. But here's the secret sauce: acceptance with joy isn't about pretending everything's perfect. It's about trusting that God's love is perfect, even when His plan looks nothing like ours.
When we release our death grip on what we wanted, we free up our hands to receive what God's actually giving us. And more often than not, His gifts are wrapped in packages we never would have chosen but end up being exactly what our hearts needed.
Maybe today you're holding onto something that's keeping you from receiving something better. A relationship that ended, a job that didn't work out, a dream that took a detour. What if, just what if, God's got something even better waiting, but you can't pick it up because you're still clutching what used to be?
Prayer: Father, help me loosen my grip on my plans and trust Your heart for my life. Give me the grace to accept with joy what You've placed in my path, knowing that Your love never makes mistakes. Help me see Your gifts, even when they're wrapped differently than I expected. In Jesus' name, Amen.
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