What to Do With the Life You Didn't Plan For

Most of us carry a picture of what our lives were supposed to look like by now. In this episode, discover why the gap between that picture and your life produces grief worth naming, and why God's plan fits better than the one you drew up.Paul Helsby had been the one who fixed things his whole life. He stepped up at 11 when his father wasn't around and his mother was disabled. He ran the household and made sure his younger siblings were fed, and he kept moving. He built a business in Barnsley, England with his wife Sam, and that same identity followed him through every year of it.Then he had a stroke. The business closed. The debt piled up. They borrowed from their own children and eventually handed back their phones and cars. A food pantry got them through the week.The life Paul had built didn't survive the stroke. But something else came through on the other side.Most of us carry a picture of what our lives were supposed to look like by now. The marriage we expected, the career we planned. And when the life we're living doesn't match that picture, there's grief in the gap. This episode takes that grief seriously before it does anything else.Proverbs 16:1 says we can make our own plans, but the Lord gives the right answer. The word translated "right answer" means the fitting response, the answer that suits the moment. God's plan fits better than the one we drew up, even when it's painful to receive it.This episode also includes something personal. Growing up, I had one plan: join the Navy or the Air Force and fly a fighter jet. I'd been flying with friends, loved every minute of it, and was ready to start lessons when I found out I'm colorblind. That door closed completely. Years later, a church member who was a commercial pilot began teaching me to fly unofficially. By the time we were done, I could do everything but solo. God redirected the dream through a different door than the one I'd planned.Through Paul's story and Proverbs 16:1, this episode makes the case that grieving the life you didn't get to have is necessary before you can fully receive the life you're in. Bypassing the grief buries it. Naming it out loud to God does something that keeping it inside can't.BY THE TIME YOU FINISH LISTENING, YOU'LL DISCOVER:Why the gap between the life you planned and the life you're living produces grief, and why naming it matters before moving onWhat Proverbs 16:1 reveals about God's plan and why it fits better than the one you drew up, even when you can't see that yetOne specific prayer you can bring to God today to begin receiving the life you're actually inGod's plan was never going to match the one you drew up for yourself. But His is better.Share This Episode:https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/235Need Prayer? Leave me a voicemail:https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/voicemailWant to keep these devotions coming? Please consider supporting this podcast.https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/support/Rate and Reviewhttps://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/reviews/new/Connect with BartFacebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/dailydevotionsforbusylivesWebsite: https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.comFeeling spiritually drained? Start here. Download your free copy of my eBook Making Time for Jesus here.Mentioned in this episode:Join Our Private Facebook CommunityIf you're looking for a place to connect with other Daily Devotions listeners and pray for each other, I'd love for you to join our private Facebook community group. Come find us at https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/group