"Lord, what are you planning to do with me"

Any regular reader of this blog knows there has been a “frequency failure.”  Extraordinary life circumstances over the last 6 months have resulted in an energy consumption that limited my capacity to write and research.  And, looking ahead, I foresee more energy leaks that will reduce my rate of writ.  Despite this, I do have plans: to have a total of 1,000 posts by year's end (today's post is my 926th), and then to index them all by subject.

Woody Allen is credited with saying, “If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.” Is it really wrong to makes plans? Evidently not. Solomon, somewhat wiser than Woody Allen, said “we can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps” (Prov. 16:9). To me, this simply means, “Make your plans; pray your plans, but don’t brand your plans.” Why? 

Solomon says: “There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death… [Hence] the sensible man considers his steps” (Prov. 16:12, 19, NLT).  In other words, no matter how well-intentioned, man-made plans will ‘die on the vine,’ “but the LORD's plans stand firm forever” (Ps. 33:11). Thus, my prayer is, Lord, what are You planning to do with me? And that's no laughing matter.

"In Step" or "Twelve Steps"?

In the past 50 years, our culture has given birth to a multitude of self-help gurus who promise success to anyone willing to follow their steps: 3 easy steps to weight loss, 7 steps to reaching your potential, 12 steps to recovery… But the apostle Paul’s ‘formula’ for success was simple: just keep ‘in-step’ with the Holy Spirit.

To the Galatians Paul said walk [keep stepping] by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh (5:16). A few verses later, Paul clarifies: let us keep in step with the Spirit (5:25, NIV). The phrase, “keep in step,” was used by the Greeks to express the regimented walk of soldiers—literally, in lock-step with one another.

As a counselor I certainly value ‘step’ recovery programs for their practical guidance. But I also know, both by way of experience and by Paul’s simple admonition (Gal. 5:16), that no number of steps will get you to your desired destination unless you are walking “in step” with the Holy Spirit.

Think about it: the last time you stumbled, you were not “in step” with the Spirit, were you!?