You and I want the blueprint for our life. The roadmap. We want the five-year forecast that shows us exactly where we’re headed and how it all turns out. And there’s a good chance we’ve said to God at one time or another, “Just tell me the plan.”
But here’s a question you might not be asking: What if you’re seeking after the wrong thing?
The Verse Everyone Knows (And Misunderstands)
You’ve probably seen Jeremiah 29:11 on coffee mugs, graduation cards, and Instagram posts:
“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.”
It’s comforting. It’s hopeful. And we read it like God is promising to give us a detailed itinerary for our lives.
But what we have to remember when we approach Scripture: when it comes to the Word of God, context is key! There are certain verses, certain promises in the Bible (like the one in Jeremiah 29:11) that were written for a specific group of people, at a specific time, for a specific purpose.
While the promise of Jeremiah 29:11 was not written directly to us, it most definitely reveals the truth about God’s perfect character that applies to each and every one of us.
Don’t miss this. What this verse is saying may have human limitations. It was written for a specific group. It was limited to certain people, for a specific time, a particular culture and a unique set of circumstances. But what this verse reveals about God and how it speaks about God is true for all people, in all places, at all times.
Keeping it in context
Let me ask you a simple question:
Who knows the plans?
God does.
What does that imply?
We don’t.
They are His plans. Not yours, not mine. Nowhere in this verse does God promise to give us plans, or even a set of instructions on what He’s doing, or why He’s doing it, and how He’s going about doing it.
This is all okay, and here’s where it gets interesting. If you keep reading past verse 11, you’ll see verses 12 and 13:
“You will call to me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart.”
Did you catch the difference?
Jeremiah 29:11 is about God and his plans.
Verses 12 and 13 are about us in relationship with God.
He says, “Seek me, not my plans.” God never said, “Seek my plans.” He says, “Seek me.”
The hope of the future that God’s talking about in verse 11? It’s not the plans, it’s the relationship with the Planner.
Why We’re So Focused on the Plans
So many times, we want to seek God’s plans because we want to know what’s going to happen. We want to know if everything is going to work out the way we want it to.
We really want to treat God’s plans like they’re a book we read in high school. A book that we read the beginning of and just want to skip to the ending. We start to assume that if it works out the way we want, all of the details in the middle just aren’t important.
But God’s not offering you a long, drawn-out plan for your life.
He’s offering Himself.
When we become so focused on the plans, we often miss Him.
What God Offers Instead of a Blueprint
But when you and I seek God and start to trust His unchanging character, something shifts.
The hope of the future that He’s talking about in verse 11 is not about the plans. It’s about a relationship with the Planner. It’s about a relationship with God.
Even if the plans aren’t what we expected, even if we don’t get all the answers right away, we can still trust the Person of God.
When you don’t know where you’re going, you can trust Who you’re following.
When you shift from seeking God’s plans to seeking God Himself, you’re freed from a certain kind of pressure… the anxious need to have it all figured out. You’re not frantically trying to decode secret messages or basing your sense of being “in God’s will” on whether circumstances are going well.
You’re simply learning to trust Him… in the uncertainty, in the waiting, in the moments when nothing makes sense.
When you’re seeking the Planner instead of demanding the plan; you are free.
- Free from the anxiety of needing to know everything.
- Free from the pressure to get it all right.
- Free to trust that the God who holds your future is good, even when you can’t see what’s coming next.
The One Question That Matters
Instead of asking God, “What’s your plan for my life?” try asking Him, “Show me You, and how I can trust You more.”
Instead of seeking certainty about the future, seek the One who holds it.
The truth is, we don’t need to see the whole road ahead. We just need to know the One walking with us.
Reflection Question
Where in your life are you gripping tightly to your own plans instead of holding them with open hands before God? What would it look like this week to seek relationship with God rather than just seeking His plans for your life?
