Understanding God and his plan for us can make it easier for us to navigate the decisions we face throughout our lives.
Photo by Hudson Hintze
Making decisions can be stressful, especially if we are worried about making the right choices for our futures. In her LDS.org blog article “You’re Not Messing Up God’s Plan for You,” Ariel Szuch describes her perception of God’s plan for her: “I’m learning that His plan for me is a lot less like a laser-crossed minefield and a lot more of a journey of coming to know myself and coming to know Him.” We need to have a better understanding of God and what “His plan for me” means for each of us. With knowledge and guidance from God, we can decide with him our future and fulfill his plan for us.
Szuch provides some explanations of what God’s plan is. It is “a journey of joyful discovery” that begins where we are. It includes invitations to reconcile our will with the Lord’s and to practice trusting him. And it is based on the understanding that “Jesus Christ is the Way.”
Szuch also explains what God’s plan is not. It is not insisting that life should be exactly what we want or expect it to be. It is not being forced by God to accept his will. And it is not one predetermined “perfect, rigid way to live.”
Everyone has doubts and fears about the future, but by getting to know God and realizing what his plan actually is, we can know that we are not messing up our futures. The plan “is not a commitment to be perfect . . . ; it’s a commitment to keep practicing.”
Discover more of Ariel Szuch’s insights about what God’s plan is and isn’t, and get a free printable in her featured article “You’re Not Messing Up God’s Plan for You.”
Source: LDS.org Blog
—Kiana Kekauoha, Mormon Insights
feature image by trevor wilson
Find more insights
Read an Ensign article by Jessica George, “Faith in God’s Plan for Me,” about her experience with trusting in God’s plan for her.
Read “Your Four Minutes” by Bishop Gary E. Stevenson about how to perform at your best with the help of the Lord during your four minutes in this life.
Read “What God Wanted for Me,” a New Era article by Carlisa Cramer and Margaret Willden that includes six stories showing blessings we can receive as we follow God’s plan for us.
Watch or read Sister Michaelene P. Grassli’s general conference talk “I Will Follow God’s Plan for Me” to learn more about making a commitment to follow God’s plan for us.
I LOVED this article!! God is not the micromanager we sometimes imagine Him to be. In my experience, especially in my young adult years, I found that He gave me the answer “you choose!” more than telling me what to do. We partner with God as we navigate life and make choices – it truly is a joyful discovery. Glad to see this highlighted ^_^
Oh, I SO needed to read this. I started tearing up from the first paragraph. Even the title of the article, “You’re Not Messing Up God’s Plan for You,” really hit me. I often think this. As I get older, closer to graduation, perpetually single… I often wonder if the promises in my patriarchal blessing no longer apply because of the mistakes I’ve made. But I have to remind myself that that’s not true. Am I doing what God wants me to do now? Yes. Am I trying? Yes. Have I repented of the mistakes I’ve made? Yes. I’ll be fine! Definitely going to read the original article now.
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