Plans and Promises

“Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand” (Proverbs 19:21).

A lot of life’s letdowns have a greater purpose. That five-minute delay looking for your misplaced car key? Maybe the Lord kept you out of a deadly accident on your commute. That part-time job you didn’t get when you were in college? Maybe the Lord steered you away from a wrong career path. That date who stood you up and made you feel so small all those years ago? Maybe it was God’s way of keeping you available for the person He had in mind for you to meet and later marry. Trust in God’s wisdom, goodness, and sovereignty.

“And I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6).

Maybe you find yourself in circumstances where your potential is hampered by limitations beyond your control. Look again. What open doors might you be overlooking right in front of your nose? God may be using the closed doors to accomplish certain results in your life—or to equip you for something much larger. Maybe He’s teaching you to trust Him completely, to wait on Him patiently, and to surrender to Him and His timing entirely.

“You make known to me the path of life; in Your presence there is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11).

I’m convinced that you and I spend too much of our lives staring at closed doors. We’re dejected, disappointed, maybe even offended that God wouldn’t let us through. We make our plans, plot our courses, and push off with enthusiasm—only to be waylaid by some insurmountable obstacle that sends us back to square one. The truth is, sometimes God closes doors to the logical, easy path to open us up to opportunities we’ve viewed as insurmountable.

“The Lord is my strength and my shield; in Him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to Him” (Psalm 28:7).

I find great comfort in knowing God is God and I am not. The longer I’ve lived, the less put off I am when God slams doors shut and moves me in another direction. Yes, early on in life and ministry it irritated me. I’d sometimes pout, maybe even grumble. But I finally discovered He always opens new doors of opportunity I could never have imagined. I’m not at all offended when a good, all-wise, sovereign God steers me in a better direction. In fact, I’m grateful. And you should be too.

“Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).

Stop pounding on closed doors. Stop trying to pry them open. Leave them with God. Know that God takes full responsibility for the doors He closes to you and those He opens. He can—and will—deal with what’s behind them in His own way. You don’t need to worry about them. The door God closes to you may be opened for somebody else. That’s His business. Move along, knowing that the Lord will guide you where He needs you.

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit” (Jeremiah 17:7-8).

When God closes a door, it doesn’t necessarily mean your plan was bad. It may very well be that He’s steering you away from something that would have been good, but where He leads you instead is much better. So, when God closes the door on something you know would be good, brace yourself. He may have something even greater in mind. Trust in Him with firm hope and confidence, and in due season His plans for you will bear fruit.

—Chuck Swindoll, from Never Lose Hope