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God has a plan and purpose for each and every one of our lives. We as human beings have a purpose for being here on earth. As you read this encouraging message, let it penetrate your heart, mind and soul. Never give up: trust, hope and have faith in God and always remember He loves you.

I found myself gazing into the ceiling as I lay in bed morning and night—sometimes with tears I could not hold back. I found myself doing the same exact thing throughout the day as I gazed into the blue sky. I found myself questioning God as I was waiting for answers. I felt like my life was at a total standstill, nothing was adding up according to God’s promises in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. I knew in my heart that God loved me but at times my soul felt empty and my thought process was full of doubt. I was struggling with everyday struggles, trials and tribulations, finding myself wanting to give up on God.

I knew God had a plan and purpose for my life here on earth. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’” I didn’t know God’s plans for my life or my purpose in being here but somehow I knew I had to wait patiently on God to move in my life.

The Bible encourages us to wait for God to act in His timing, even when our needs seems too great to wait any longer: “We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you hope for may be fully realized.” (Hebrews 6:11). I didn’t understand what the plan was that God had in store for me, but there was definitely a purpose for me being here.

I was raised in church all my life as a Christian, a pastor’s son, an ordained deacon and also a praise team leader. Yet I somehow wandered off course in my Christian journey, and my soul was filling up with guilt and shame. Satan tried to lead me in the direction that wasn’t what God had in His plan for my life. The road was very ugly and full of sin which pretty much destroyed my marriage and family.

I praise God for giving me a praying wife. She never once gave up on me despite my sinful acts. By God’s grace and His plans that He had as my destiny, God’s Word and the Holy Spirit led me back into the right direction and put me back on God’s map for my life. I knew God had forgiven my sins as I confessed them to Him personally. Psalm 130:1-8 truly states God will surely forgive us if we confess our sin to Him. God’s love for me was bigger than I could ever imagine.

God has a plan and purpose in our everyday walk with Him. We must be obedient to God’s words in the Bible, obey His commands, trust and have faith in Him. We need to love Him with all our heart, mind and soul (Matthew 22:37). We must obey the Holy Spirit’s direction in reference to the plans God’s already mapped out for us.

The plans I had mapped out somehow weren’t lining up with God’s plans. I was trying to draw up a diagram of my future, plot out a plan that would guide me in the right direction, but unfortunately it wasn’t what God wanted. I wasn’t letting God’s plans direct my life. I was planning my life according to my own selfish desires and excluding God.

Proverb 16:9 says, “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.” So I decided to pray about it. I went to God with humbleness and a sincere heart, asking God to determine my steps, and lead me in the direction He mapped out for me to go. I wanted to be led by the Holy Spirit to reach His destination, not the ones I had planned. After I prayed, I waited patiently for God’s plans to work in my life.

“The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged” (Deuteronomy 31:8). There was now no need for me to worry about my future because I knew God was with me every day of my life. He truly states that He will never leave me. His plan was already predestined even before I was born: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet” (Jeremiah 1:5). Praise God!

Your ways may seems weary and tired, your days may seems dark and lonely. Everything may seem to be at a standstill. The road you’re traveling down may be going in the wrong direction, or the map you’ve chosen to follow could be incorrect or outdated. Whatever you are going through in life, pray and ask God for direction and guidance. Ask Him to provide you with the right map: His plan for your life and your purpose for being here on earth. Then study God’s Word to learn what His will is.

The map God has for you will cause you to head in the right direction. His map will not get you lost, because it will lead you into the plans He has for your life. Remember God loves us so much that he gave His only begotten son Jesus Christ who paid the price for our sins and sins of the world. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

I knew my Father in heaven had a plan and purpose for my life and He has the same for you. Confess your sins to him, believe in your heart that His son Jesus Christ paid the price for your sins when he was crucified on the cross and then raised from the dead. Read and study His word daily and obey His commands, and He will be with you every hour of the day.

I can truly say, one of God’s plans is for me is to continue to write gospel tracts like this one to encourage believers and non-believers throughout the entire world to follow in the direction of His son Jesus Christ. My brothers and sisters: stay encouraged, meditate on God’s words daily, and DON’T GIVE UP!

HOLD ON, remember God has a plan and a purpose for your life. You are here for a reason not a season. God loves you more than your heart can even imagine. —Copyright © 2013 by Darrell Richmond

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