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Discussion Forum : Scriptures and Doctrine : He knows the Plans He has for you!

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 He knows the Plans He has for you!

He knows the Plans He has for you




In Jeremiah 29:11 The Lord says...............
For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity.

When I was 19 I found myself in a jail cell (not the first time I had been arrested) I was very drunk and trying to sleep with one very thin blanket. Then this person was brought in and thrown in the next cell to me. She screamed the whole way, what she was going to do to the cops and so on. Even after they had locked the door, she continued screaming obscenities and threatening violence. I knew it was going to be a long night. Ironically, this crazy girl( a well know lesbian and drug dealer) stayed in the same project as me so we shared a taxi back to our neighborhood the next morning.

This drunkenness was a way of life for me. I grew up in a working class society where drunkenness was a right of passage. I very much admired men who could consume copious amounts of alcohol and still continue to drink. My highest ambition was to become just like them. For the most part I achieved my goals.

In a couple of desperate moves, I moved my family to London and then to America and finally, at the age of 26, having being married almost ten years, I came to Jesus and He changed me completely. I had been saved for about 4 years, when the Lord, completely out of the blue, said "I want you to go home and share the Gospel."

After many miracles, we sold everything and moved back to Scotland. I got involved with a small Pentecostal church and various outreaches. I was able to share my testimony in the local prison. My brother, who is in prison then, and still is as I write this, warned me not to mention his name. I think having a brother as a Christian would kinda ruin his " street cred."

Of course I mentioned my brothers name every time I spoke to the men which opened many doors for me with these guys.
There was one outreach I was looking forward to very much. We had hired a small building right in the heart of the project I had lived in for 7 years. It was known and still is known as "The Strone." This name would strike fear into most Scottish people as it was probably the most notorious government housing project in Scotland. For a long time it was also a "no-go ," area for the police.


We would hold meetings in this little building every Saturday night for six weeks. In between we would go round the doors posting flyers and speaking to people. I would show up every Saturday night, and every Saturday night there would be a pretty good turnout of Christians. Now don't get me wrong, I love to fellowship but the whole point of this outreach was to, well, reach out to the unsaved.

On the fifth Saturday afternoon my mother and grandmother were visiting, my grandmother being in a wheelchair. I told my mom that I would drive Grandma home as I was not going to the meeting that night. I told her it was pretty pointless as only Christians showed up.

The meeting started at 7. At four that afternoon the Holy Spirit whispered to my heart "I want you at the meeting tonight." I told my mother and she said that she would take Grandma home.
I walked into the meeting that night and looked around, all Christians. Not only that, it was a young noisy worship band that I really did not care for. I stood with my eyes closed, thinking how much noise these young people were making. All of a sudden the Holy Spirit fell. A heavy holiness from the Lord had quieted the young band and suddenly He was in charge and His presence was everywhere. I heard some noise in front of me. Someone had come in and sat right in front of me.

This person had their head shaved all the way in and I could see the tattoos on their neck. I felt compelled to reach my hand out and pray for the person who was obviously not a Christian. I could now see that is was a female. Her shoulders started to convulse as she sobbed. I could see she was fighting to control her sobbing. Then a young Christian girl came over and put her arms around her. As soon as she touched the unsaved woman, she jumped to her feet and literally ran from the building.

Before I knew what I was doing, I jumped to my feet and ran after her. There was three set of double doors and I caught up with her at the last set. It was only then that I realized who she was. It was the screaming girl that had shared the next cell to me all those years ago. Her name was Susan. I said to her very gently "Do you remember me Susan." Susan came from a notorious family who everyone knew. She said she remembered me. She also said that she knew she was to meet someone here this night. I explained to her how Jesus had completely changed my life and that there was a different way to live. She listened carefully and than asked "what do I do now?" I told her that we could go back in and that she could give her heart to the Lord. We walked through the first and then the second double doors. As we got to the third she began to tremble. Here was this woman, who could take on and beat most men I knew, terrified of walking down the aisle. I took her arm and told her that I would walk down with her. She walked forward and was gloriously saved.

I believe with all my heart that the major reason that my wife and I went all the way to Scotland for a year was for the saving of Susan. Can you imagine a God that would go to enormous lengths to save someone that society did not care in the least for. I can see the Lord looking down, twelve years previous to a drunken screaming woman, and a hopeless drunk guy and thinking to Himself " I know the plans I have for you," "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity."

The Lord has delivered Susan and I from captivity. Perhaps you have a family member or friend or loved one that seems to be in a hopeless situation, you may even have given up all hope for that person. Yet Our Lord is Hope itself. Hope is the wellspring that all of our joy flows from. We have two choices in this life, even as a Christian, we can live in hope or we can despair. Hope gives birth to joy and to life and to strength. It is because I am in Christ that my hope springs eternal. It is awesome to know that our Heavenly Father is willing to go to enormous lengths to fulfill His plans.

Psalm 139

You hem me in--behind and before;
you have laid your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,"
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.


 2006/3/19 19:57









 Re: He knows the Plans He has for you!

A wonderful testimony of grace, very sober indeed.

I find that the ones who are brought up in the church are hardly used, and those who have come from a terrible life of sin God uses. Of course God will use anyone, however this is a pattern that I have seen through out my Christian life.

Thank you for sharing that, I love hearing stories of courage and strength.

 2006/3/19 20:25









 Re: He knows the Plans He has for you!


Frank,

Thank you for sharing this. It is apposite for me right now.

 2006/3/20 7:40









 Re: He knows the Plans He has for you!


Somehow I posted the same comment twice, so, rather than waste the opportunity, let me say I had never heard of the Strone but I recognise the phenomenum of Christians coming to 'outreach' meetings, and also, that 'knowledge' you have about having gone back to Scotland to meet Susan. That was wonderful! And also that she knew she would meet 'someone' there! I loved that! That glorious Someone Who has better plans for us. Amen!

 2006/3/20 7:41









 Re:

Hi Dorcas
You would have to come from my world to have heard of the Strone:) Its a housing project in Greenock. Let me know what "it is the opposite of me" means ..............Frank

 2006/3/20 9:01









 Re: He knows the Plans He has for you!


Hi Frank,

You know, I think I have heard of the Strone, but I didn't know where it was. Many (many) years ago, a cousin trained as a nurse in Greenock, so I've been there a few times, and also on the way to Kintyre where we used to holiday near the McCartney estate. (I was born in Edinburgh.)

'Apposite' is a word which means something like.... that two 'things' or concepts can be placed beside each other and they are matching or equal in a kind of complementary way. (You can play a game matching the most appropriate or 'apposite' adjective for a noun...) Is that helpful? (That's a non-dictionary definition...)

 2006/3/20 9:29









 Re:

"Thank you for sharing this. It is apposite for me right now."

I was actually wondering what this sentence above meant in the context of where you are in relation to what I wrote :).........Frank

 2006/3/20 9:36









 Re:

Loveslave writes

"I find that the ones who are brought up in the church are hardly used, and those who have come from a terrible life of sin God uses. Of course God will use anyone, however this is a pattern that I have seen through out my Christian life."

I too have found this. This would make an interesting subject in itself. What does that say about people who have grown up in the church? There is a saying that there is no grandchildren in the Kingdom of God, I am always worried when I hear people tell me that they got saved when they were four and grew up in the church, I am not sure what kind of "Christianity," that kind of "conversion,: leads to..........Frank

 2006/3/20 14:26









 Re: He knows the Plans He has for you

Quote:
I was actually wondering what this sentence above meant in the context of where you are in relation to what I wrote :).........Frank

Hi Frank,

About 15 months ago, I had a real check in my spirit, to [i]not[/i] go ahead with some 'plans' I had in mind. They were only 'in mind', but, had been there for a long time. So, I didn't. Many weeks later I joined SI, and that led to a protracted period of deep inner healing, as some of the saints here prayed for me. So far so good, but there are many gaps in [u]my[/u] knowledge about way my future will resolve.

 2006/3/21 10:12
h2oboy
Member



Joined: 2006/3/12
Posts: 89
Georgia, USA

 Re: His plans

Hi Frank and Linn,

"No grandchildren in the kingdom?" What kind of conversion?

Let me briefly share some testimony. My mother's parents came to know Jesus as Lord and Savior when they were in their early 20s. My mother was born a few years later and was in church all of her life (this did not mean that she did not sin or was automatically 'saved'). My father was born again when my mother was pregnant with me.

I have been in church all of my life (again nothing automatic). My oldest son now 31 has been born again since he was 6 years old.

What I would like to say is that although each of us were not born 'Christians' and we did commit sins, we all had true conversions as believers of Jesus Christ. Each of us is a decendant of Adam and as such were subject to the law of sin and death. Each of us had a lawless, rebellious spirit that had to go so that Jesus Christ could become King and Lord.

Although this testimony is not very common it is a wonderful example of the faithfulness of God.

Prov 22:6
6 Train up a child in the way he should go, And even when he is old he will not depart from it.
ASV

My grandmother and grandfather prayed each and every day for their children, their grand children, and their great-grand children. God is faithful.

James 5:16
16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. NASB

By the way my grand daughter turned 9 Saturday and Jesus has been her Savior for more than 3 years.

Linn,

In regard to God's plans for us I struggled with that too. When I was 14 I 'heard' God call me into full-time ministry. I answered yes Lord, I will do anything, except be a missionary and especially not Africa. When I was 19 I believed that God was ready for me. I sent out letters to churches and I got one reply. I soon understood that I was not ready.

Over the years God allowed me to do many things in the Church and Kingdom, including be janitor. When He finally had me, as a ball of clay, pounded and shapeable, I said, OK I will do what ever you tell me. Show me what you want me to be and do. He let me see a big vision.

Like a typical man I said, Thank you, I've got it. I went off running again and feel flat on my face. He finally had to bring me to the place of saying, I don't care about tomorrow, what do you want me to do today? When I said that doors started flying open.

I take each day one at a time. Each day He gives me instructions for that day and I trust Him to have tomorrow taken care of. I find that he does more through me in a week than I thought possible to get done in a month. Each day is a new adventure and nothing is impossible because the possible God lives inside of me. Anything that He wants to do today I can believe for including healing the sick, cleansing the lepers, casting out demons and raising the dead.

By the way be careful what you tell God you will not be willing to do. I have been to Central America 4 times and Africa twice. I leave for Guatemala in 12 days and back to Africa twice more this year (if I heard right).

God bless you as you surrender unconditionally and leave the planning to Him.

Love,
Jeff


_________________
Jeff Smith

 2006/3/21 21:39Profile





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