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We are humans, we are foolish, we do things without thinking or consulting God and when they go awry we turn to Him and wonder what happened. But was it God or was it you?

People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry at the Lord.

Proverbs 19:3

The book of Proverbs is full of little verses that make me smile. There is so much truth to what is said and it is a good book to dig into as a means of reminding ourselves how we should behave.

As a mom I find myself thinking about these little proverbs when raising children. Kids are so apt to jump into things headfirst without realizing the potential dangers! Even when we are standing right there, offering help they push us aside and insist they know better.

How frustrating it is for us, to know what they should or shouldn’t do but at the same time to also realize there has to come a time when they take responsibility (and accept consequences) for their actions.

And then I reread the verse and think about myself as an adult.

The verse before Proverbs 19:3, is another good one. “Enthusiasm without knowledge is no good; haste makes mistakes.” In other words, it’s great to be excited about something but if you don’t know how to do it, you can’t channel your energy.

It leads into this topic perfectly.

How often do we as fully functioning adults jump into things with good intentions without considering God or His plans. Just as children will (literally) jump into questionable situations, without heeding the warnings we give them. God stands there, flashing red lights or holding an arrow sign telling us to rethink things and we excitedly exclaim that we got this!

We need enthusiasm and knowledge. Otherwise we are just shooting in the dark.

Then when things don’t work out we pause to look at God and say “what went wrong?”

Sometimes we have the audacity to even be angry with Him, as if He didn’t ordain the plans we made without Him.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in life, it’s that without God, nothing will work. It might seem that the things you are doing are alright, for a time, but if you haven’t been following God’s specific plans, the seeds you are sowing will not have strong roots.

When storms come, if you don’t have strong roots you will not withstand the wind. If your life hasn’t been nurtured by your Heavenly Father, you are setting yourself up for a weak foundation that won’t be able to support any amount of strain, weight or movement. Any plans you make, won’t have a leg to stand on.

Was It God or Was It You?

When that happens, when the plan withers and dies, you can’t be mad at God for not helping when it wasn’t within His purposes for you. Your enthusiasm may have started the process but without God’s knowledge you had no way of caring for and cultivating growth.

If you make a plan without consulting God, especially if it is a big plan, you risk putting all your energy into a futile operation. We need God’s direction so we know which way to go. Not only to ensure success but also to ensure we don’t fall into a pit that God has to dig us out of.

So before you jump headfirst into a fantastic idea, take it to God in prayer. Ask the Holy Spirit to give you discernment so you are not walking into darkness but instead in God’s light. He knows the plans for us and they are always good, our enthusiasm should be in His ways, not our own.

Spend everyday with God, making plans with Him, so you know your ideas are ordained by Him. Then you don’t have to ask yourself “Was it God, or was it me?” You don’t have to worry about making mistakes because you know you are following God’s instructions.

Then if things don’t go how you expected, you can rest assured it is part of God’s greater endeavours and not your own foolishness!

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