My Plans vs. God’s Steps: Who Really Wins?

 I woke up very late today, around 9 am to be specific. This was because I slept late, at about 3 am. That was after we finished the Hallelujah Challenge online, and I had to use the opportunity to do an assignment I was given by my Reverend, which would be due by the end of the month. So, I told myself I wouldn’t be disturbed. The first thing was to stop my alarm from ringing, and I strictly told my sister not to try to wake me up until I opened my eyes myself. I was glad I slept for more than 6 hours and felt much better. But while I was still lying down, I decided to pick up my phone and go through the verse of the day when I got a notification on WhatsApp from a church member that we would be going to visit another member who had delivered a baby girl earlier this week. She said we would be going by 3:30 pm, and immediately, I declined in my mind because I was actually pissed off that I wasn’t informed in advance so I could prepare. I had my plans for the day, but now, something else would change them for me. I had made up my mind not to go when the verse came to my mind from Proverbs 16:9, which says that we can make plans, but God determines our steps. I felt bad though, and even after reciting the verse again, I wasn’t ready to be distracted by anything. But something changed. I stood up to continue my devotion, and while I was at it, I felt the Holy Spirit telling me to go. And while the nudging persisted, I found myself saying loudly, “Okay, Holy Spirit, I will go. Not my will but Yours only.” Immediately, I felt this calmness in my spirit and felt excited because I obeyed Him. Instantly, the negative thoughts about me not going and looking for excuses vanished. This made me remember the verse from Galatians 5:16 that says when we let the Holy Spirit guide our lives, we won’t be doing what our sinful nature craves. My flesh kept bringing up silly excuses for me to lie about not going, but the Holy Spirit was preventing me from lying, and this is something I have determined not to do anymore. Since the Holy Spirit is empowering me, I should surrender completely. Lo and behold, the devotion I studied today talked about the ways to serve God and be useful to Him, and one of those ways is by serving others. I knew this was it! The Holy Spirit had confirmed this again. I learnt from there that though it’s always hard sometimes to serve God through our service to others, He will always give us the strength, and that way, we can be useful for the Master’s use for every good work. I am getting prepared to go with them to visit the family and their baby, later today, and with this, I render my service to God’s children. Knowing that since I have obeyed, I will be rewarded. This might speak to someone else reading this too. Though it’s not by our power or might but by the Spirit of God which works in us, giving us the desire and power to do the will of God (Philippians 2:13). --- _{*Image is mine*}