Good News & Good Plans
Do you believe that God has good plans for you?
If you are like me, there being 11 questions instead of 10 bothers you. Similarly, old me would never have started a blog on 9/26. And I missed several days. I like order, symmetry and fresh starts. But life isn’t orderly and symmetrical. There are no fresh starts, only the fabricated ones we invent. We are changing by the moment. Each experience, big or small/good or bad, has an impact.
I think this is a fitting last question for finding your baseline and where you go from here largely hangs in the balance of how you answer this question. If your initial reaction is not a confident resounding “yes” - I want you to spend quite a bit of time here.
Your belief that God has good plans for you is a litmus test for:
Knowing what the gospel is
Jesus is the Son of God. He is the Messiah of Old Testament prophecy. He is the fulfillment of the Kingdom of God. He was born of the virgin Mary, lived a sinless life, experienced trials/temptations/suffering, died for our sins and on the third day rose from the dead. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.
Understanding what the gospel means
Through his life, death and resurrection we are gifted with the Holy Spirit. Through the Holy Spirit we are assured of our salvation, unified with Christ and others, comforted, convicted, empowered, shepherded and transformed. Our salvation is by grace and grace alone. No ifs, ands or buts. Grace by very definition is unearned and unmerited. Through Christ’s ultimate sacrifice, we are forgiven - meaning we can move forward in freedom because His forgiveness is an exoneration and a commitment not to collect now or in the future. He will remember our sins no more. We can release the need to be absolved because it is finished.
Believing that the gospel is true
We must actually believe #1 and #2 for it to be transformative. And I don’t mean believe broadly or believe that it is true for others. Everyone but you. I mean you must believe that it is true FOR YOU. Jesus lived, died and rose FOR YOU. The Holy Spirit is available TO YOU and FOR YOU. YOU were worth living for. YOU were worth dying for. YOU have been saved. There is nothing YOU have done that cannot be absolved by Christ. His grace is sufficient FOR YOU.
As mentioned previously, I was raised in the church and have “known” the gospel all my life. Understand it? Sure. Believe it? Yes. Until I needed it. Until I felt broken beyond repair. Ashamed to my core. There are a lot of escape routes IN your life but there is no escape routes FROM your life (except for not life; death). You may be able to outrun your past for a period of time but as soon as you stop running, it is right there like the shadow that it has been hiding in. With God’s grace, you can stop running. One of my favorite verses is Matthew 11:28-30: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” I remember reading that and stopping on the word “REST” and melting. The very idea of unburdening my soul was overwhelming. My burdens were too much. My baggage too heavy. No one would willingly shoulder the weight. But Jesus.
A year ago (aka rock bottom), I came up with a mantra. I still have it on my bathroom mirror as a reminder to look at each morning while I brush my teeth.
I am FORGIVEN (1 John 1:9, Ephesians 1:7)
I deserve PEACE (John 14:27, 16:33, Philippians 4:7)
I am ACCEPTABLE (Romans 8:1, 15:7)
I deserve LOVE (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)
I am BLESSED (Philippians 4:19)
I deserve JOYFULNESS (Romans 15:13)
You are welcome to use mine or come up with your own. Or start with mine and alter it as we go. All of those are true for you regardless of if you include them in yours. Read it every day. Write it down every day. Put it somewhere where you see it every day. Do this until you start to believe it and then keep doing it anyway. The word “remember” (including variations) is used over 500 times in the Bible and there is good reason. Our forgetfulness is the perfect scheme for the enemy’s lies. Keep the truth close at hand.
The good news is indicative of His good plans. Yes, even for you. ***Full disclosure, my first iteration was different - it read “I am ENOUGH” instead of “I am ACCEPTABLE” - I changed it for two reasons - (1) I recognized that I actually am not enough (on my own) and (2) I realized that my biggest challenge was feeling acceptable rather than feeling like I was enough which aren’t necessarily the same. Enough means adequate for the want or need while acceptable means capable or worthy of being accepted; satisfactory or proper for whatever purpose is considered. And I have a purpose here. I also initially had “I deserve HAPPINESS” and decided to change it to “I deserve JOYFULNESS” - because happiness is a fleeting feeling that is typically sparked by a particular event or moment and joyfulness is a long-lasting state of contentment and satisfaction with life.
Found this post about happiness vs. joy that I really enjoyed: https://restorativecc.com/happiness-vs-joy/#:~:text=When%20I%20look%20to%20the,This%20is%20so%20countercultural.
