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Eager to pursue their God-ordained purpose,
they lace up their spiritual running shoes and
get ready to go for it.
Sadly, however, many of those people
stumble and fall before they even get started.
They trip over the same obstacle that has
stopped countless others from wholeheartedly
following God's Master Plan.
They are stopped cold by fear.
What are they afraid of ?
Any number of things. They're afraid God's
plan will be too hard, that it will cost them
more than it will pay. They're afraid His plan
won't be any fun, or that it will leave them
unfulfi lled, dissatisfi ed and deprived of the
pleasures of life. They're afraid God will ask
more from them than they have the strength
to give.
But, according to the Bible, nothing could
be further from the truth. It tells us again and
again that God is good, and that His plans for
us are glorious. It assures us He will give us the
desires of our hearts and, when the going gets
tough, He'll substitute His strength for our
weakness.
I've done a lot of studying and preaching
about the goodness of God and found that
many people are totally shocked when they
realize how good God actually is. For years,
they've believed all the pain and heartache
they've experienced in life has come from
Him. Some have been religiously taught that
God sends those hurts and hardships to teach
them something. Some think God could help
them if He wanted to, but He just doesn't care.
Others have been hurt and disappointed so
many times, they've come to the conclusion
God is simply against them, that He truly is
knocking them in the head.
But the fact is, God is not the source of
pain and su ering in the world. He's not our
problem.
Satan, the enemy of God, is the problem. He
is the one who has bad plans for people. He is
Initially, most people are
excited when they realize
God has a Master Plan for
their lives. Their hearts leap
at the thought of discovering
their divine calling and destiny.
by Gloria Copeland
