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    • Are you a planner?

      Posted at 8:00 am by sneuhofer, on April 25, 2018

      Are you a planner? I know people who carefully consider each step of their life. They went to school, graduated from college, and then got a great paying job. They made plans to get through each stage of their life, financially as well as personally. It’s like life’s little to-do list. School – check; Job – check; Spouse – check; Kids – check. They have planned everything from the time they left school to retirement. They knew what their goals were for the next 5 to 10 years and even 15 to 20 years down the road.

      Ok – before your mind starts racing and you think that I’m suggesting it’s bad to plan, let me just add this…I wonder in all of the planning we do if we ever stop to considered what God’s plan is for our life? You know He does have one for us right? (Jer. 29:11). All too often we make our own plans and then either ask God to bless them or don’t we even include Him at all. Proverbs 19:21 says “People can make all kinds of plans, but only the Lord’s plan will happen.”

      Only God has a “plan A” for our lives. It’s the very best for us – a prosperous future – an eternal home. Does this mean we shouldn’t plan? NO – we should – we just need to include God in the planning process. We serve and AWESOME God. He put the stars in place and created every living thing, yet He still wants a close and personal relationship with us. He wants to be in the details! Isn’t that wonderful to know?

      What are you planning that you haven’t talked to Him about yet? Remember NOTHING is too small.

      Related scripture: Matt. 6:33; Habakkuk 3:17 – 19

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      Posted in Christian growth, God's plan, planning | 0 Comments
    • Who’s dreams are you following?

      Posted at 7:00 am by sneuhofer, on March 1, 2018

      Our true accomplishments are not in the accolades or awards we receive; it’s in the way we humble ourselves and submit to God’s plan for our lives.  The world would have us to think and believe that we have to have the best of the best and do whatever we have to do to “keep up with the Joneses” to be truly successful.  But that’s not how God sees it.  He wants simple obedience to His will for our lives (see Micah 6:8, Colossians 1:9-10, John 15:4-5.)  In Isaiah 43:7 (NIV) we are told “Bring all who claim me as their God, for I have made them for my glory. It was I who created them.” He has made us on purpose for a purpose – to bring him GLORY.

      I learned this truth the hard way. Instead of following God’s leading, I went into a career field that had me stressed out and doing things I never thought I’d do to get ahead. It’s funny..all those things I did to “get ahead” got me absolutely no where and brought no honor or glory to God! I never moved up past a certain point on the corporate ladder nor did I make over a certain amount of money. It’s not because I wasn’t trying… I sacrificed way too much time with my family in hopes of climbing up to the next rung. Only the time spent wasn’t rewarded…it was overlooked. I was operating outside of the will of God.

      It wasn’t until I truly listened to God and left corporate America that I felt a peace about my path. God’s ways are higher than our ways (Is. 55:9). He has specifically equipped us to do the tasks He has called us to do (Eph. 2:10). It was finally when I submitted my agenda to His that I was able to truly thrive!

      I wanted to include a link today to a Casting Crowns song. This song serves as a great reminder to me. When ordinary people with ordinary dreams submit their dreams to God, He will give them so much more they could ever dared to dream or imagine.  Dream for You (Casting Crowns)

      Related reading:
      Romans 12:11; Gal. 6:9; Col. 3:17, 1 Thes 4:1

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      Posted in God size dreams, God's plan | 0 Comments
    • Our plans vs. God’s plans

      Posted at 7:00 am by sneuhofer, on January 19, 2018

      Proverbs 19:3 (NLT) People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry at the LORD.

      Have you ever been mad at God? Something bad…really bad… happens and you decide to blame God. So you yell and scream at Him because you think He allowed the circumstance to happen.

      “How can you do this to me?!” You shout. “Don’t you care about me at all? How could you have let this happen?”

      I found myself screaming those very words at the top of my lungs when our expensive attempt at in-vitro fertilization (IVF) failed. The doctor said she had only seen one other case like mine in her entire career and because of the high probability of another failed attempt, the couple decided not to go through the procedure again.

      My husband and I wanted to have a family of our own. We had been through so many fertility procedures, and even had a child in our home through our city’s foster-adopt program only to come up empty. For me the IVF failure was the final straw and I blew up at God.

      I was mad and asked the question, “How could He have allowed all these things to happen?”

      What I didn’t realize at the time is this… God’s timing and plan for my life is perfect. Instead of seeking the Lord and trusting Him through the circumstance, I flew off the handle and got angry because things weren’t happening the way I thought they should have.

      Two weeks after the IVF failed, I received a phone call from a dear friend. It went something like this:

      “Remember Andi?”

      I thought for a moment. “I remember the name.”

      “Well, she’s pregnant and wants to give you the baby.”

      “What?” My heart raced as my head processed what my friend has just said.

      “The pregnancy was unplanned and she really doesn’t feel like she could provide for a child at this point in her life. She knows some of what you’ve gone through and loves this child enough to give him or her a good family.”

      Silence hung in the air as I thought “could this be the reason everything else hasn’t worked out for us?”

      I had no idea how to respond.

      “I need to talk to my husband before going any further. You know we’ve been down this road before and it’s painful. The promise of a child and then the decision by the mother to keep the baby hurts so much. I don’t think I could go through that again.”

      “I know. When she told me I told her I couldn’t let you go through another heartache. She promised me it would happen…and I believe her.”

      God knows our hearts and sees our life from beginning to end. He knew the IVF would fail. His plan was for the child this woman carried to be ours. Because I could only see the situation that was right in front of me, I reacted in anger when things didn’t turn out the way I planned. But God knew I would be a mother in less than 9 months.

      His plans are so much bigger and better than ours!

      Through this journey, my faith has grown and I have learned to trust Him completely. I also know without a doubt He is working even when I can’t see what He’s doing.

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      Posted in God's plan, seeking God, trusting God | 0 Comments
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