"Wisdom for Our Plans"

INTRODUCTION

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(Name Tag) - “Hello. My name is Jeff Banks and I’m addicted to Planning.” I have “plans” on my calendar for the upcoming week and I have plans on my calendar six months from now. Some of you “cringe” right? It’s one thing to plan out a week in advance but to plan six months out is some kind of disease! Don’t hate. Perhaps you share my addiction and need to join my support group. How many of you are planner? (Please stand). Awesome – you’re my people! For those of you who aren’t standing, you’re a bit more spontaneous, you don’t make plans, and quite frankly you’re crazy. I don’t know how you get through life, honestly. I love you deeply but how do you do it?

I love planning. Most of the conversations when I have coffee with my bride revolves around plans – “What’s the plan for today?” What’s the plan for dinner?” “What’s the plan for the weekend?” “What’s the plan for our trip?” Most of my frustration in life comes when things don’t go according to my plan – leave later than I plan or plan gets changed due to circumstances out of my control – I like the comfort and safety of my plans. In fact, next to my Bible, I carry this planner every where I go. I have a written planner (old school) and put my plans on my phone calendar so Dana can see what I’m up to each day.

Need

Planner or non-planner, plans are a part of life. All of us have to navigate plans even if we’re not making plans. We have to be subject to the plans of others. We can make plans in advance or at the last minute but sometimes plans must be made because things just don’t happen automatically. Plans impact our lives in various ways.

Important decisions about future (don’t know what to do) Frustrated when plans don’t work out We pray for the future plans of our kids/grandkids (hopes & desires)

I’m a “planner” and yet as I take inventory of my life I recognize that there were plans that I had that never quite came to pass. There are chapters of my life that I didn’t plan but I recognize that it was a part of a bigger plan—God’s plan—and I’m so thankful. How about you? As a church we desire to make an impact the lives of others through the good news of Jesus Christ so we make plans for the budget, plans for the Sunday morning bible fellowship classes and small groups, plans for AWANA and student ministry “Minute to Win It” kick-offs, and plans to preach through the book of Jonah in the fall. Since plans are a vital part of our lives it’s imperative that we glean God’s wisdom for our plans from God’s Word.

Preview

This morning we return to the book of Proverbs to conclude our mini-series “Walking in Wisdom.” We’ve gleaned wisdom for our words, wisdom for our pride, and wisdom for our wallet from the book of Proverbs. Today we conclude the series with “Wisdom for Our Plans.”

So please open up your Bible to the book of Proverbs. It’s found in the OT. If you need a Bible I invite you to grab one from the back table there to follow along. Proverbs is in one of the 30 books that make of the OT. The OT is divided up into four main sections—the Law, History, Poetry, and Prophets—and Proverbs is one of the books of poetry. What is the theme of the book? (Wisdom). The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (1:7) – wisdom is knowledge that leads to understanding who God is and the skill of living God’s way.

WISDOM FOR OUR PLANS

O.K. With that as a backdrop, let’s dig in to discover God’s wisdom for Your Plans. Today we will uncover four wisdom principles for our plans. In the end I pray that you will know God more and that your plans will be impacted by God’s truth uncovered this morning. Let’s dig in. If you have your Bible (printed or electronic), and I hope you do, open up to the book of Proverbs.

I) Our plans are subject to God’s sovereignty ()

Please go to Proverbs. . . Let’s begin this discovery of wisdom for our plans in . .

21Many are the plans in a man’s heart,

but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails. [1]

The proverb teaches us basic doctrine—anthropology and the theology proper—the study of humanity and the study of God. Here we discover one of the most important truths about God which has a profound impact on our plans. Let’s take a closer look at this Proverb and uncover a life-changing wisdom principle for our plans. There are two contrasting points in this Proverb (antithetical parallelism).

1) Our Opportunity to Plan (19:21a)

First, we see “Our Opportunity to Plan.” We have this opening declaration— “There are many plans in a man’s heart. Once again the term “man” is used generally for mankind so it includes women and could be translated “Many are the plans in a person’s heart.” The “plans” we make originate from within (our hearts) and denotes the act of thinking and devising of intentions and ideas. We’re not talking about whims or inclinations, this refers thinking, deliberating, and determining specific plans for a future activity or goal.

Notice we have the freedom to make plans. We’ve all made plans, some of us spend more time planning than others, and some of the plans we think of are more significant than others. Some of our plans seem rather insignificant in the grand scheme of life—such as where you will go to lunch today (Applebees or Oles) or what we’ll wear each day—and other plans seem more significant like what college to attend, what vacation to take, plans for a wedding, and plans for retirement. We have the opportunity (freedom) to make plans every day. We can and should make plans in life. I love making plans.

2) The Reality of God’s Sovereignty (19:21b)

Our Opportunity to Make Plans is contrasted with The Reality of God’s Sovereignty. Notice all the plans we make within are contrasted with the Lord’s impact on our plans. We make our plans BUT “it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” There is a difference between the plans we come up with in our mind and what actually occurs in life. The Lord is sovereign over our plans—we are free to plan but in the end, it’s the Lord’s purpose that literally “rises up and prevails.” All “the creative calculations” that originate from our mind are ultimately dependent upon His sovereign will. We can make our plans but the end result of our plans is subject to the sovereignty of God. The Lord has the power to make our plans succeed, cause our plans to fail, bring about the opposite of our plans, and redeem our plans in order to accomplish His sovereign plan and purposes for our lives. Thankfully not every plan we make will come to pass. The Lord is sovereign over our plan.

APPLICATION

Principle #1: Our plans are subject to God’s sovereignty! Our plans are subject to God’s sovereignty! We must humbly acknowledge the reality of God’s sovereignty in our lives.None of our plans can stand apart from His sovereign will. Our best laid plans are subject to His sovereignty—we make our plans but the outcome is in God’s hands—for He can cause them to succeed or cause them to fail in order to accomplish His ultimate and greater plan and purpose for our lives.

Trump Card – We love to play games at our house – board games and card games – we play card games like Rook, “Up and Down the River,” and Pitch that have “trump”—a specific color or suit that “trumps” or takes all other cards. If I play a card worth points and my opponent plays a “trump” card they will get the points. The trump card has the power and the final say in what happens in each round.

God’s sovereignty is the “trump card” over our plans. God’s sovereign will and decree will trump our plans every time.

GRACE U: Many of the students I met at Grace University had “planned” to graduate from Grace U and the staff and faculty had plans to continue teaching at Grace– those plans were trumped by God’s sovereignty in the closing of the school – many students had their plans disrupted and redirected because of the sovereign will of God. God had other plans for those students who are now attending other schools. God can and will trump our plans - He’s the King - He’s in charge. We have a hard time because we want to be in charge and we want life to be about our plans.

We serve a sovereign God. God is in control and He allows circumstances and situations into our lives according to His sovereign will. And while we have freedom to make plans God is fulfilling His plan and purpose in our lives. Don’t let God’s sovereignty frustrate you or discourage you. The reality of God’s sovereignty in our plans is a source of peace—nothing that happens in our life is a cosmic accident—and while He is not the author of evil He can and will redeem the brokenness of sinful choices and plans for His glory and our good. God can redeem all of our plans in order to accomplish His plan and purpose in our lives.

And yet He allows us to make plans. God has given us freedom to plan who you will marry, the places you visit, and how we will invest our lives day and in day out as we walk on this planet. Make your plans – acknowledging that you are not God – and your plans are subject to God’s sovereignty.

The hardest part is this wisdom principle is accepting His plan over our plan. We come to a deep place of surrender to His will and not our own. You might not own your own business and become a multi-millionaire by age 40. Your plan to win a state championship, get pregnant, go on your dream vacation, or get a promotion might never happen.

In God’s sovereignty your plans might never come to pass but in the scope of eternity you need to trust that God knows what’s best for you and that His plan and purpose for you is far greater than the plans you have for yourself, His sovereign purpose and plan for your life is far greater and more glorious—all our earthly plans are a part of His eternal purpose and plan to save and sanctify us for His glory—and to give us life in Him! Remember, that’s the ultimate goal, right?

· God’s eternal plan to save us by His grace through faith in Jesus – ()

· God’s plan to sanctify us to become more like Jesus ()

· God’s plan to live in and through us to be His people (Acts)

Our plans are good but God’s plans are greater, eternal, and far more glorious. Make your plans while acknowledging God’s sovereignty – surrendering to His sovereign plans and purposes for your life!

II) Our plans are governed by the mystery of God’s providence ()

Let’s consider a second wisdom principle for our plans. Turn to . .

9In his heart a man plans his course,

but the Lord determines his steps. [2]

once again highlights God’s involvement with our plans. We find a connection between the freedom we have to make plans (which is good) and God’s involvement in our plans. The proverb compels us to consider the intersection of our human freedom and God’s divine interaction with our lives. reinforces that our plans our subject to God’s sovereignty. In we discover “how” God works in and through our plans to bring about His sovereign plan. Once again we have a contrast (antithetical parallelism) between our initiative in making plans and the Lord’s involvement in our plans.

1) The Plans of Our Hearts (16:9a)

The first half of the Proverbs highlights “The Plans of Our Hearts.” Again we see our plans are made in our heart—our plans originate from within—our minds are employed in thinking, deliberating, and deciding that formulate our plans. In the most literal sense when we “plan our way” it refers to the path that our feet will travel in life—the plans we make set the course of our lives—we have the freedom to make plans that literally determine the steps we will take in life.

Play an instrument: If you plan to play an instrument in high school you are planning your way—you’re planning the very steps you will take—your plan will result in you going to purchase a trombone (why play anything else?), your plan will cause your feet to go to practice, and your plan will cause your feet to go march at a half-time show. We plan our way—the steps we will take in life.

And yet the planning of our way is much greater than the literal path our feet will walk. The plans that originate in our heart (from within) refer to “the entire view of life and behavior”—we have the freedom to “plan” how we’re going to live, who we will spend time with, and what we’re going to do each day! All of you woke up this morning and “planned your way”—not just the route you would take to church but you planned what you would wear—some of you put way more thought (planning) into what you would wear and it shows! Your plan to go to church resulted in the planning of your way – even though you didn’t list out the point by point details of your plan like when you would leave, what door you would enter, or who you would talk to, the plan to come to church was the planning of your way which included when you left, the door you decided to enter, and of course where you would sit (you thought about sitting in your favorite spot). Each plan we make is the planning of our way.

2) The Providence of God (16:9b)

Once again, we have this contrast between the plans we make within and the Lord’s involvement in our plans. We move from “The Plans of Our Heart” to “The Providence of God.” The plans we make for the course of our lives is contrasted with God’s Providence. A man plans his way “BUT the Lord determines his steps” (NIV). The NET Bible says “A person plans his course but the Lord directs his steps.” Question: After our plans are made, who determines the “steps” of our lives? (Not a trick question!) Answer: The Lord! Let’s pause right there. We make plans but the Lord determines our steps. I don’t want us to miss the impact of this powerful declaration— “The Lord directs our steps”—the word Lord here in the Hebrew text is YHWH—YHWH directs our steps. The text does not say “Elohim” directs our steps, the text does not say “Adonai” directs our steps, YHWH directs our steps. I think the usage God’s name YHWH is significant because this is God’s most personal name used in the OT. The Lord is “personal” and He is actively involved in our lives—including the directing of our steps in the plans that we make in life. The Lord is not distant and disengaged in your life. YHWH is in fact actively involved in directing each step of our lives in unseen ways.

Bruce Waltke - “Not one step is taken apart from the Lord’s superintendence.”

God is the divine superintendent of our steps. We are confronted with the intersection of our plans and God’s providence. I suspect that God’s providence is a foreign concept and rarely the subject of sermons or the topic conversations. Sadly, the subject of God’s providence is all too often tucked away in dusty theology books or confined to a twenty-minute discussion in a theology class. Our sojourn in this life would be greatly enhanced by a deeper understanding and embrace of God’s providence in our lives. So, what is God’s providence? Here’s one good definition from J.I. Packer in the New Bible Dictionary.

J.I. Packer (New Bible Dictionary) - Divine providence is “the unceasing activity of the Creator, in overflowing bounty and goodwill, He upholds His creatures, guides and governs all events, circumstances, and free acts of angels and men, and directs everything to its appointed goal, for His own glory.”

God is orchestrating our steps in the outworking of our plans. It’s hard to fully grasp and understand the mystery of God’s Providence – God’s intervention in our lives in the midst to accomplish HIs sovereign plan. God’s providence is a mystery! ().

24A man’s steps are directed by the Lord.

How then can anyone understand his own way? [3]

Embrace the mystery of God’s providence in our plans. God is behind the scenes orchestrating our very steps in the outworking of our plan. We have two great examples of God’s Providence in the midst of plans in the OT!

· Joseph: His brothers planned to kill his brother but that was too violent so they changed their plans to selling him off to slavery—and then lied to their father and said he had been killed. The brothers had set a course for Joseph’s way but Yahweh directed his steps and eventually put him second in charge to the ruler of Egypt to fulfil His purposes and plans to save their family from a famine and remain faithful to His covenant with Jacob. What Joseph’s planned for evil, God had planned for good!

· Jonah – His heart planned to run from God, he didn’t want to preach to the people of Nineveh because he knew God would be gracious and compassionate if they repented of their wicked ways, so he got a ship running in the opposite direction of God’s plan. And yet God was at work in the midst of Jonah’s rebellion. The Lord pursued Jonah and superintended his steps. The Lord worked in the midst of Jonah’s rebellion to bring about His purposes and plans for the prophet and the people of Nineveh.

God is superintending the course of our life to fulfill His purpose and plans. Not only are “Our plans subject to God’s sovereignty” – they are impacted by God’s Providence which brings us to “Principle #2.

APPLICATION

Principle #2: Our Plans are governed by the mystery of God’s Providence! Our Plans are governed by the mystery of God’s Providence!

Today we are confronted with the providence of God in our lives. YHWH governs the steps we take to fulfill His sovereign purposes and plans. God is at work in and through our plans in ways we can’t fully comprehend. Today we must rest in the God’s providence in our lives.

Our plans are governed by God’s providence. God is involved in the outworking of our plans through the governing of our steps. We’re not robots—God hasn’t programmed us to walk a path or put us on auto pilot—and yet He is mysteriously working through all of our circumstances, decisions, events, and activities to accomplish His plan.

· Horrible circumstance – abortion, abuse, or death that God. God is at work in the midst of those horrible circumstances and situations, ordaining our steps in order to redeem the evil for His eternal good and accomplish His sovereign purposes and plans (Healing our hearts, making us more like Jesus, and give us life in Him).

· Girl/Guy – Some of you have desired and dreamed of meeting someone, get married, and live happily ever after but those plans have not come to pass. Ultimately those plans are subject to God’s sovereignty but if that’s HIs plan you must trust that He is governing your steps and leading you to the one you will marry.

· Plan to be a parent– Some of you have planned to have children but those plans haven’t been fulfilled yet (miscarriage or infertility). Keep resting in God’s governing of your steps – each disappointment will have its purpose – and each day He is working through your steps to fulfill His plan for your life.

· Job: closed door after ten interviews – God directing your steps through the closed doors to fulfill His purpose and plans – the job He will lead you to in the future.

God is providentially directing your steps in the outworking of your plans. God is directing your steps when your plan is successful. God is directing your steps when your plan fails. God directs your steps as you plan your way, and in the midst of your plans He’s governing your steps to live where you live, meet who you meet, play the sport that you play, build life-long friendships, impact others through your work, and through it all HE is working through the events, plans, and circumstances of your life to make you more like Jesus. Even when our plans fail, God’s the superintendent of our steps and He wants those circumstances to cause us to know Him more and conform us to be more like Jesus. We will face a lot of disappointment when our plans to come to pass, rest in His providential governing of your way to fulfill His plan for your life. The success and the failure of our plans are a part of God’s providential plan to save and sanctify us.

III) Our plans must be influenced by godly counsel ()

In light of God’s sovereignty and providence in our plans, let’s discover two additional wisdom principles that provide practical insight for the plans we make in our lives. Turn to . . .

22Plans fail for lack of counsel,

but with many advisers they succeed. [4]

We find a contrast between plans that “fail” and “plans that succeed.” If you want your plans to succeed—and who doesn’t—listen to God’s Word. There is one reason why some plans generally fail while other plans generally succeed.

Let’s begin with the reason many plans fail. In the first half of the Proverb we discover that many “Plans fail for lack of counsel.” The word ‘plans” refer to “the activities we think up in our mind, inventions, plots, and designs of the mind. The Proverb declares that our plans “fail” when there is no counsel—the term “counsel” here literally means “confidential speech”—so it declares that a lack of getting private counsel and advice about our plans will impact the ultimate success of those plans. Failing to seek out someone in private to get good counsel will cause our plans to fail. Plans without counsel will more likely “break,” “be thwarted,” and “go wrong.” Plans that are not influenced by an intimate friend will fail. The lack of counsel implies an attitude of self-willed arrogance which leads to moving forward with the plans with headstrong obstinance. Plans that aren’t subjected to and influenced by good counsel will be frustrated, thwarted, ineffectual, and brought to nothing. Plans need open counsel from friends who can critique and correct the plans to make them better.

In contrast we find the declaration we discover that many plans succeed through the help of “many advisors.” Plans that are submitted to and influenced by multiple “advisors” will be established—they will stand and endure because the weakness of the plan has been strengthened by the scrutiny of trusted counselors—and being humble enough to allow others to speak into the ignorance or limitations of the plan will more likely cause the plan to stand. If you discuss your plans with a group of good counselors, trusting their insight and heeding their advice, your plans will be much more likely to succeed. This brings us to wisdom principle #3.

APPLICATION

Principle #3: Our plans must be influenced by good counsel. Our plans must be influenced by good counsel.

Our plans must be influenced by good counsel. We must guard against our own arrogance. Pride can tempt us to think that are plans are awesome and infallable. Our arrogance can deceive us into thinking that are plans are so good they don’t need to be influenced by the scrutiny of a good friend. How often to you get headstrong about your plans, forging ahead without seeking counsel from a good friend? Anyone? Our prideful resistance to seeking out advice will be costly. Our failure to seek out godly counsel for our plans will cause them to fail.

Wisdom calls us to share our plans with a group of trusted counselors who will give us good advice (feedback). Share your plans with godly counselors. Let others you trust speak into your plans. Seek counsel from people you respect and trust – their input will reveal the shortcomings of the plan – their counsel will strengthen the plan and it will be more likely to succeed.

What plan do you need to share with a good friend who can give you good advice?

Plan to start a business? Plan to begin a dating relationship? Plan to take on a second job? Plan to purchase a boat? Plan to end a relationship? Plan to confront a friend? Plan to go on the mission field? Plan to get out of debt? Plan to get engaged/married? Plan to go to college?

Share your plan with a good friend who can give you good advice. Our plans must be influenced by good counsel/advice. Your plans will be more likely to succeed if you seek out godly counsel from a trusted friend.

IV) Our plans must be entrusted to God ()

Our plans are subject to God’s sovereignty. Our plans are governed by the mystery of God’s providence. Our plans should be influenced by godly counsel. We come to the fourth and final wisdom principle for our plans. Turn to . . .

3Commit to the Lord whatever you do,

and your plans will succeed. [5]

In we find an exhortation to “commit” whatever we do to Yahweh and our plans will succeed. Really!? Wow! Seriously?! If you’re like me, this Proverbs sounds really sweet– who doesn’t want their plans to succeed. Here’s the formula – commit whatever you do to the Lord and your plans will succeed – amazing! I want my plans to succeed so count me in on this Proverb (some of you just woke up). We love success and hate failure. Success makes us look good and feel important. If God is about making me successful, than I’m listening. Everybody likes a positive message about plans that succeed! Before we get too excited we need to understand this Proverb in it’s proper context.

First, remember these are principles and not promises. Don’t claim this as a promise that if you commit each and every plan to the Lord it will succeed. You can’t commit your plan to “rob a bank” to the Lord thinking it will guarantee success (won’t get caught and you’ll live in luxury). Secondly, Proverb 16:3 is closely connected with 16:1-2 which reveals that our plans (the intentions of our hearts) originate with us but the Lord controls the outcome (16:1). And while our “ways” seem pure in our own eyes, the Lord weighs our motives (16:2). God rules over the initiatives (plans) of our hearts (16:1) and he weighs the motives of our plans (16:2). Remembering these two basic elements of Bible study will keep you from thinking that you can commit any plan to the Lord and its success is guaranteed. You can’t use this as a prooftext to justify making misguided and downright sinful plans. provides no justification for making plans which are not in accordance with His revealed will. God weighs the motives of our plans and rules over the outcome of our plans.

So what wisdom about our plans do we glean from ? The Proverb exhorts the reader (you and me) to “commit whatever you do to the Lord”—commit the works you doing or the works you want to do to the Lord—it refers to the act of “rolling” your plans upon Yahweh—roll your plans onto the Lord and leave them there with Him. Roll your planned works away from yourself and leave them with God. You must “commit” the works you plan to do to the Lord, rolling them to Him, and leave them there under His care.

Bruce Waltke - “The disciple should commit his planned deeds to the Lord.”

The second half of the Proverb reveals the result of committing your plans to the Lord—as we’ve already noted by understanding this statement in context not every plan will succeed—the plans that are made in accordance with His will and made with God-honoring motives will succeed over selfish, misguided, and sinful plans. The inclinations of our hearts and the works we plan to do in line with His will and good motives will be more likely to be established, what you think in your will be brought to historical reality, for the assessment and achievement of our plans depends upon God and His sovereign plans and purposes.

APPLICATION

Principle #4: Our plans must be placed into God’s hands. Our plans must be placed into God’s hands.

Put Your plans in God’s hands. Submit your plans to the Lord. The most successful plans are those given to God. When you commit your plans to the Lord you are releasing them to Him. Once again this demonstrates humility – by submitting them to God we’re demonstrating that we are dependent upon Him for everything – and we’re expressing our trust in His sovereignty and providence in our plans.

Putting our plans into God’s hands is hard! It’s hard to put our plans into God’s hands because it’s “my plan.” It’s also hard because we tend to make a plan, give it to Him, and then take it back from Him because we want to be in control of the outcome.

Is there a plan you need to put in God’s hands? Is there a plan you need to entrust to Him today?

Make a plan and then put it into His hands – submit your plans to Him – and trust in His sovereignty and providence to work in and through them and bring them to successful completion. When you put your plans in God’s hands you can free yourself from worry, fret, and anxiety. We can commit our plans to Him with the full trust and confidence that He is the One who establishes the success of our plans.

CONCLUSION

Refresh – “Hello, My name is Jeff Banks. I’m addicted to Planning.” Whether your planner or a non-planner – plans impact our lives. Some plans succeed, some plans will fail.

Renew – We desperately need divine wisdom to guide our feeble plans.

Restate - Let’s “walk in wisdom” as followers of Jesus. Let’s remember wisdom principles for our plans and apply them to our lives.

· Our plans are subject to God’s sovereignty

· Our plans are governed by the mystery of God’s providence.

· Let your plans be influence by godly counsel

· Put your plans into God’s hands.

These wisdom principles prompt a personal response. These wisdom principles for our plans calls us to live a life of deep surrender, gratitude, and abiding trust in Him.

Deep Surrender – The reality of God’s sovereignty calls us to a life of deep surrender! We must acknowledge that we’re not in control of our destiny—nothing we plan can override His sovereign plan—and this leads us to a deep place of humble surrender. We must surrender our plans to His plan. Each of has our own “Garden of Gethsemane”—yielding our will to the Father’s will like Jesus by praying, “Not my will but Your will.” Our surrender is never simple. Our surrender is never easy. And yet we can trust that His sovereign purposes and plans are for our good and His glory.

Gratitude – Secondly, the reality of God’s sovereignty and the mystery of God’s providence in my plans produces gratitude within me. When I think of His directing of my steps to fulfill His sovereign purpose, I’m grateful that He is actively involved and at work in my life. I’m so thankful that YHWH loves me in such a personal way.

Abiding Trust – We won’t always understand “why” God allows some of our plans to come to fruition and some of our plans to fail. And yet regardless of the success or failure of our plans, we can live with an abiding trust that He is governing our steps to fulfill His sovereign purpose and plans to save us and sanctify us—and we can trust that His sovereign and providential redemption of our plans will be for our good and His glory!

Pray

[1] The Holy Bible: New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1984), .

[2] The Holy Bible: New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1984), .

[3] The Holy Bible: New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1984), .

[4] The Holy Bible: New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1984), .

[5] The Holy Bible: New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1984), .