Five Minute Friday - Many - Clear Reflections

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One word. Five minutes to write about it. This is the idea behind Five Minute Friday and this is today's free-writing post.

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When I was a kid I had so many dreams and plans and things I wanted to do with my life. Most of which were probably not practical. Rock star maybe, but princess and pirate were clearly not within the realm of possibility. As I got older my goals and to-do list were pared down a bit as the reality of time and money hit me. I still had a longer list than my calendar, bank account, and other responsibilities could afford. Then again, I've been able to do many things on my wishlist, and many more that I hadn't thought to add to the list! And I hope I never stop dreaming and trying to achieve things, because that's what makes life interesting, right? Many of the things I wanted to do would not have been good for me, or they would have got in the way of what God had in mind.

But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever,

the purposes of his heart through all generations.

~Psalm 33:11~

Many are the plans in a person's heart,

but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails.

~Proverbs 19:21~

We've got all kinds of plans and things we want to do, but is it what God wants to do? Do our many plans line up with his purpose?

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And my five minutes are up, but I'm going to keep writing, in order to answer those questions in light of the Write 28 Days prompt for today . . . 

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Clear Reflections

The best way to know whether my plans line up with God's is to see what the Bible says about it. And that's not just the actions that I'm planning, but my motives behind those actions. Spend time reflecting on how God's Word guides my plans and actions, and also on what God's Word reveals about my own heart and motives.

All a person's ways seem pure to them,

but motives are weighed by the LORD.

Commit to the LORD whatever you do,

and he will establish your plans.

~Proverbs 16:2-3~

This is one of the reasons the Psalmist loved the Law so much - by meditating on it, he not only learned what God wanted to teach him and what was expected of him, but he could reflect on what it could show him about his own heart and mind.

I will study your commandments

and reflect on your ways.

Psalm 119:15~

I reflect at night on who you are, O LORD;

therefore, I obey your instructions.

~Psalm 119:55~

Oh that my actions would consistently reflect your decrees!

~Psalm 119:5~

I have a long way to go before all my many plans and actions and attitudes accurately reflect God's character, but that is the goal all Christ-followers are striving for. As we get to know God better, we start to see ourselves and the world more clearly, and we ourselves become clearer reflections of who he is.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.

For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears.

When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.

For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

~I Corinthians 13:8-12~

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This post is linked at Five Minute Friday for the word prompt "Many".

This post is part of the Write 28 Days Blogging Challenge hosted by Anita Ojeda. Find all my posts for the 2023 challenge here: Write Something Somewhere

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