When Things Don't Go the Way You ExpectSample

God Still Has a Good Plan

Have you seen the movie Home Alone? In it, a little kid named Kevin gets left behind when his family goes away at Christmastime. In one scene he pretends to be shaving and then he slaps on aftershave with both hands and yells, “Agh!” In the movie trailer when we see that scene, it seems as if Kevin is freaking out because of being home alone with bad guys.

As a result, whenever I think of someone freaking out over the unexpected, I think of them slapping their face just like he did! I call it “making the Home Alone face.”

Maybe something has happened in your life that has devastated you or just didn’t go the way you expected at all. Maybe you’re making the “Home Alone face” (or you feel like making it) right now!

But there’s one thing I want you to know: God has never made the Home Alone face, and He never will be. He’s never said, “Wow, I didn’t see that coming!” The unexpected events of your life do not freak out God or even catch Him by surprise. He still has a plan. I know what I’m talking about: when I was 37, my husband died suddenly and that left me to raise our teenage sons and pastor our church by myself.

Even though unexpected things happen, God says to us in Jeremiah 29:11, “I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for” (Msg).

I love this verse. It means that there is a plan, even if you’re surprised by where you find yourself. And the plan hasn’t changed, even if it hasn’t gone the way you expected. God knows the plan and He wants to tell you all about it so that you can walk in it.

God’s plan will produce good results in your life. He wants you to keep believing Him and walking in that plan, even if things haven’t happened the way you expected. You can trust Him.