God’s Plan is the Master Blueprint

Dad sat on the end of the sofa and mom sat in the chair next to it. It was Friday night after my children’s Christmas concert. The kids were in bed and my husband sat on the loveseat while I sprawled on the floor of our living room. The four of us were just relaxing while mom and dad perused my family scrapbooks.

Dad had been recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and in the quiet of the evening I asked the question, “When you look back over all these years together, is there anything you would do differently? Anything you would change?” I was looking for wisdom from their 55+ years of marriage and careers, from parenting and from the strong Christian base of their life.

Mom and dad looked at each other, and in almost the same instant, and in spite of how different their personalities are, they smiled and replied almost in unison, “No. I wouldn’t change anything.”

My mom added that in a lot of moments throughout their life together she might have wanted to change something, taken away a rough moment or two, but now, in retrospect, if those moments were to change, then so would the end result, so no, she wouldn’t change anything.

Dad quietly stated the same; things were not always easy, but he knew he was exactly where God wanted him to be right now, in this moment and at this point in his life. So there was nothing to change.

There was no plan that could have worked out more perfectly than God’s blueprint.
They spent the next couple of hours telling me stories of moments that were monumental and life changing. At times they wondered if they were doing the right thing, making the right decision or if they were steaming down the wrong track. They tried to face each life decision with prayer and the right intention and they trusted God to do the rest.

I love their stories. I treasure that evening. But even more, those words of affirmation from two very different people who wouldn’t change a thing because they were where God wanted them to be have profoundly affected me ever since – especially as dad’s Alzheimer’s has changed their and their lives once again.

I love the legacy they’ve passed on –trust in God’s word. I pray daily for that ability to trust God’s plan when I can’t see what’s ahead. To handle whatever I’m in the middle of with faith that it’s going to take me where I need to go. To let God’s will be done and not mine.

When my son Andrew was undergoing treatment for Leukemia, someone sent me a copy of this song – it’s amazing message of trusting God’s heart has helped me through many moments. God bless!