Proverbs 19:21 -Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.
One summer one of my grandsons was visiting and he wanted me to bake a pound cake. He remembered how much he liked it the last time he visited and just couldn’t wait. So I said, “Sure” and started to get the ingredients and mixer out. (I think he loved the batter as much as the cake).
But about every 15 minutes he was back in the kitchen asking, “Is it done yet?” I kept telling
him, “Not yet son. If you want to get it right, it takes time.” But he just couldn’t understand why it was taking so long. The fourth time he came into the kitchen, he decided not to say anything but opened the oven door to look at the cake. I raised my voice a little to get his attention and told him to close the oven door slowly and I would call him when it was done. If he slammed the door close, the cake would have dropped and he would have missed his “prize”.
After everything was done, I gave him a big slice with a scoop of ice cream. He left the kitchen with a big smile on his face, satisfied.
What my grandson didn’t realize was that there was a 2.5 hour process to prep, mix, bake and cool the cake. The “plan in his mind” was to speed up the process and eat the cake asap. Fortunately, I was “lord of the kitchen”, and in control. Not only was I able to provide the results he was looking for, but give him extra.
God is “Lord of the Kitchen of Life”. He has a “recipe” (plan) for our lives, tailor made for us, that involves a process. If we step ahead of Him and try to jump to the results, we could cause our “cake” to fall and create a mess. Sometimes he has to “raise” His voice to get our attention. If we hear and obey, we will make things better for ourselves in the end. Most times, the most valuable thing we receive is not the final product, but the “faith nuggets” in the process.
Trust God in the process. He is the only one who can take the diverse ingredients (events) of your life and turn them into a masterpiece. You may even get some ice cream too. :-)
Why…because He loves you and is sovereign.