Jul 22, 2012

The Cycle Breaker

"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." -Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)
Do you ever feel as though you live in a cycle of disaster? Where it seems that every beauty has its flaw, every success is followed by extreme failure, every flight ends in a fall?  Do you wish to cry - as David did - "My God, why have You forsaken me?" Do the heavens feel like brass and the earth as unyielding as a desert?




We go through seasons of trial. Sometimes they last longer than we think we can bear. Has every relationship failed? Perhaps each business venture ends poorly? Or you've failed to reach the call of God yet again? Are there finance problems? Maybe you're in one of those situations yet again today. Sometimes the silence of God in these times feels unfair. We feel abandoned, left alone to struggle, helpless in the face of yet another calamity. We can't figure out why things are happening this way once again.


And yet...knowing that we go through all this, the Lord declares. Notice that He doesn't just SAY it, He DECLARES it. He knows in trouble we humans grow a little deaf. He knows we are prone to giving in to hopelessness and despair in hard times. He knows how weak, how failing, how prone to wander we are. And so He DECLARES His intentions and He PROCLAIMS His plans. 


His plan for you is to prosper you. Even in this season of failure, He is preparing you for great prosperity. He really is. I know because He said it. And you can take His promises to the bank. His plan does not include harm for you. You will not come out of this trial maimed, injured, or wounded beyond repair. He WILL give you a hope. He IS giving you a future.

But here is the key: let Him break the cycle of disaster. It has to be about Him. It has to be for His glory. It has to be to make His name great. He will not break through for us as long as we think we can do it without Him. Our plans for us are faulty, are shortsighted, are only a chapter in the story. Our plans will fail until we are out of human options.


His plans are glorious, grand, and beyond comprehension. In His mercy He will not let us succeed in our shortsighted plans. He will let us fail until we let Him work His plans in us. He will let us fail until we finally say, "GOD, it will take a miracle, and I can't do it without You!" 


And then He breaks through. He comes down like thunder. He breaks the cycle. He accomplishes His plans. He takes us into adventures we never dreamed. He works HIS PLANS and they are GOOD.

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