Last night I posted on The Outspoken TULIP  Facebook page that I wouldn’t be blogging today because John and I had a family funeral to attend. Circumstances made it necessary for John to stay home today (don’t worry, he’s all right precisely because he opted to stay home and rest), leaving me with time to blog.

So hi. I’m here!

The change in plans initially hurt my pride. After dramatically announcing that I wouldn’t be able to blog today, I’m sitting at my computer feeling a bit sheepish. If only I’d stayed off Facebook! The whole thing reminds me of a warning James wrote in his epistle:

¹³ Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”— ¹⁴ yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. ¹⁵ Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” ¹⁶ As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. ~~James 4:13-17 (ESV)

While I had every intention of being with John’s family today, I really didn’t know what God had planned in His sovereignty. I presumed to know what I’d be doing, and I foolishly broadcast my presumption on social media.

Truthfully, I appreciate this reminder that the Lord doesn’t have to conform to my plans. I’m thankful for His gentle correction as He orders my steps according to His purposes. He is so faithful to  bring me back to Scripture.

But also, He reminds me that submitting my puny little plans to Him allows me to meditate (in the Biblical sense of the term) on His unchanging nature. Circumstances change all the time, but the Lord remains steadfast in His goodness. Today didn’t turn out as John and I expected, but we still saw God’s kindness in keeping us home.

¹⁶ Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. ¹⁷ Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. ~~James 1:16-17 (ESV)

Circumstances are fickle, and they easily disappoint us. The Lord, however, never changes, and we can trust Him when life throws us curveballs. And isn’t His faithfulness glorious?

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