GOD'S PLANS ~Faithful Friday ~ Leslie L. McKee

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God’s Plans

A Devotional  
by Leslie L. McKee

“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”

Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT)

2020 has been a crazy, chaotic, and even scary year. It’s pretty much a guarantee that if someone had been asked in 2015 what they’d be doing five years later, they would’ve been incorrect. This year has been something nobody anticipated.

Yet, 2020 was not a surprise to the Lord. He knew long before we were born exactly what would happen this year, as well as what our response would be to all that is going on around us.

Some people may question where God has been in all that’s gone on in their lives. Not just with the pandemic, but with each trial they have faced. They may feel abandoned, forgotten, or without purpose.

The truth is actually quite simple: God is right here with us. He’s never left. He is still in control, and He still has a plan. Even when we don’t see a way, God can—and will—make a way.

It’s hard to fathom yet amazing to understand that God knew us before birth. (Jeremiah 1:15) He knows every little detail of our lives, right down to each hair on our head. (Luke 12:7) God sees the big picture that we can’t see or perhaps even imagine.

God hasn’t forgotten His people. His love, grace, and mercy are never-ending. That’s true even when life (or the world) seems out of control. Knowing that His plans are for our good—to prosper us and give us a hope-filled future—is comforting and certain, even when times are uncertain. He is the peace amid all the chaos. 

 Lord, help me to cling to the reminder that everything in my life is for a purpose—Your purpose—and I can trust You, no matter what is going on around me. Amen.

Leslie L. McKee

Leslie is an editor, reviewer, and author. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and The Christian PEN. Some of her devotionals were published in 2017 compilations by Ellie Claire: Just Breathe and Refresh Your Soul. Another is in Breathe: Devotions to Quiet the Soul, published in 2020. Her flash fiction story, “A Knight to Remember,” was published in Splickety Magazine’s September 2018 issue, and “Love on the Scrambler” in Spark Flash Fiction’s July 2019 issue.

Leslie enjoys reading, playing piano, crocheting, spending time with family and friends (and her turtle!), and rooting for the NY Giants.