Written by Pastor Jack Wellman– Jeremiah 29:11
Devotional: 3 Plans God Has For Us
Plans for Us To Prosper
God wants us to prosper but not in the ways that you might think. Naturally, He isn’t against anyone being rich, but it is the love of money and pursuit of riches that is sinful, as Paul wrote to Timothy, “Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil” (1 Tim 6:9-10a). Loving money more than God is clearly sin, but being rich is not. The apostle John wrote, “Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, as it goes well with your soul” (3 John 1:2). He was not talking about money. He prayed we would be in good health and that things would go well for us. God wants to prosper you but in the right things, and if it’s in money so that you can be generous, there’s nothing wrong with that.
Plans for Our Hope
Talk about a great plan God has for us! Our hope is in our eternal glory with Christ (Col 1:27), for without God there is no hope (Eph 2:12). Our faith is based upon the assurance of what we hope for (Heb 11:1), and the great hope we have in His appearing helps to purify us (1 John 3:3); in what ways, I don’t exactly know. I do know that our hope in the coming eternal life with God was promised ages ago by God (Titus 1:2), but if our hope is only in this world, we are to be much pitied (1 Cor 15:19). Paul confidently wrote, “On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again” (2 Cor 1:10). God has a plan for us, and it is for us to prosper and to give us a hope and a future.
Plans for Our Future
Talk about planning for the future. I can hardly plan tomorrow, and what I plan often blows up in my face, but what God plans for us is so much greater than we can even imagine. We can affect our future in many ways. What we do today can determine what our future rewards will be. This is what Paul meant when he wrote that we’re to be “rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life” (1 Tim 6:18-19). In the Parable of the Talents, Jesus said that those who use their talents wisely, that is for the King of the kingdom, He will say to them “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master” (Matt 25:21). God has a great plan for our future, but the more good we do for God’s glory now, the brighter our future will be in the Kingdom.
Conclusion
God is so good to us because His plans include our prospering, our having a hope, and our having an amazing future. His plan never includes harming us, so take heart that God has the best of plans for us. We ought to rejoice in Him and continually give Him thanks and praise. Isn’t that a good plan?
