Have I Ruined God’s Plans For Me?
There they were again – those words exploding in my head: “You’re such a quitter. You really blew it. What a failure!”
I never set out to be a failure. I had great plans for my life! College, a degree in History, teach, get married and raise a family. I graduated from high school and went off to college ready to conquer the world! Two weeks later, I returned home a quitter and forever a failure in my mind. All my adult life, I’ve let it define me. If I didn’t remind myself that I was a college dropout, others sure would. The big “F” for failure was firmly attached to my forehead.
The chances are good that there has been an experience in your life that you or others may define as a failure.
Maybe there’s been a mistake made, an opportunity squandered, a wrong choice, or a discarded dream. Quite possibly you, like me, let the failure define your life and believe that you’ve missed opportunities to be faithful to the life God designed for you.
You may find yourself asking “Have I ruined God’s plan for me?”
I’ve asked that question before and I am thankful that the Bible is full of stories about quitters and failures. I’m thankful that there are men and women, like us, in Scripture that failed, made wrong choices, squandered, and missed opportunities to be faithful to God.
Believe it or not, great heroes of the faith like Abraham, Rahab, David, and the Apostle Peter all made mistakes, wrong choices, and squandered opportunities. Abraham told the lie that Sarah was his sister to protect himself and slept with Hagar, the servant. David committed adultery with another man’s wife and then had the man murdered. Rahab had the reputation of being a prostitute and Peter denied he knew Jesus. Surely the world would label them as failures! But we can take solace that they’re not labeled that way by God.
Isn’t it surprising that the word failure isn’t in front of their names?
Instead, we hear Abraham called God’s “friend” We see Rahab listed in the genealogy of Jesus and included in the Hebrews “Hall of Faith”. David is called a “man after God’s own heart”. And Peter? He went on to boldly proclaim Jesus’ name without fear and is known as one of the most influential early Christian leaders. These examples show us that we can’t ruin God’s plan for our lives. 
Thankfully, God defines us and not our failures. God’s plan depends on His faithfulness not our own. Because of God’s sovereignty, our mistakes, wrong choices, and squandered opportunities cannot thwart His plans. God will not allow us to disrupt His plans! We have the assurance of His Word –
“The Lord of Heaven’s Armies has spoken—
who can change his plans?
When his hand is raised,
who can stop him?” Isaiah 14:27
God cannot fail. Therefore, our failures don’t hinder His work. Breathe deeply, my friend. When we trust in His perfection rather than our own imperfections, we can move forward and trust Him to bring redemption from our mistakes, wrong choices, squandered opportunities, and failures. In His love and compassion, He will redeem our failures into good. We have His promise –
“And we know that God causes everything to work together
for the good of those who love God
and are called according to his purpose for them.” Romans 8:28
If you are letting your failure define you, turn your thoughts to God. Remember His perfection. Remember His Sovereignty over your life. Remember His love and compassion for you. Claim His promises. Pray and ask Him to show you how He has redeemed your failure for good. Then move forward in the confidence of His truth.
© 2021 Robin R King
