Has anyone NOT had a plot twist in their lives? Please don’t tell me I’m the only one who has experienced an entire change in life trajectory, not just a little life hiccup or bend in the road. I love books with a plot twist; just not sure I appreciate them in myself. But all this being said…I think these changes happen to everyone’s life, and they’re there for a reason. And they’re not new to the 21st century, no no, the Bible and more recent history is riddled with them.
First, the reason for them. Well, first, let’s go back to control [refresh your memory when we talked about the importance of Change]. When we have control, we often feel self-satisfied and at peace. When we do not have control, we feel unstable and often in-need. It’s not that control is bad, but when we feel our lives are under our control is that we often do not feel we need Jesus. And it is when our lives have suddenly spiraled out of control, when there has been a plot twist, that we find ourselves praying for God to step in, maybe realizing that we’d gotten too comfortable…and maybe not. I write from my own discussions with God and experience here. So this is one reason.
Another reason is that God IS in control. He has been from the start, and will see our world through to the end. “‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.'” Revelation 1:8. And if there is a plot twist, it is because He “changes times and seasons; He deposes kings and raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.” Daniel 2:21. There is a purpose to the plot twist, but it is very possible we may not be privy to the answer here until we finally have a rest in Heaven.
I don’t know what plot twists you’ve been through, but I can look back and thus far see how God was with me all the way through mine. Maybe I wasn’t going the right direction, and I needed correction, or maybe I was and God simply had a purpose for letting me go a certain pathway and the twists that followed relied on the knowledge and friendships and experiences prior. The past few months have been lessons in “oh…I wasn’t prepared for that…but I can learn” moments.
But it helps to see this throughout history.
Noah and Mrs. Noah: the only righteous people in the land simply surviving, wondering when the Messiah was coming, the world has gotten so bad. God: Stop everything, quit being productive and instead build a boat and preach for the next 120 years because you’re gonna need it; oh, by the way, no one is going to listen to you.
Gideon: the last-born son in the smallest tribe of Israel, hiding to salvage some food from bullying neighbors. God: hey, I know you’re not military trained but you get to go fight the 200,000 with only 300 men and, no, you don’t need special training because you’re going to just blow a horn and hold up a torch. No, you don’t need a shield or sword against a massive army.
Hosea: sure God I’ll be your prophet, what do you want me to say to Israel? I can be persuasive. God: yeah, I need you to go marry a prostitute and then when she takes your sons and leaves you, you go back to her father and get her again and promise to love her. This is my message to Israel that I still love her…even though Israel has not had a good king since your nation split from Judah and you will see her taken captive by the dreaded Babylon.
Joseph: I’m going to get married and just be a successful-enough carpenter to pay the exorbitant taxes to Rome and feed a family. God: I need you to be successful instead as a faithful father to the Son of God and to train him to love God more than anything, even life itself. Oh, and don’t stone the mother of the baby, though that’s what the law of Moses says you should do.
Paul: God, I am willing to go anywhere and preach anything, I am well-educated and zealous, I am a Jew’s Jew and will be able to argue with the best of them. God: Thank you for volunteering, but I need you instead to work tirelessly going to the heathen and gentiles. Rome has gone mad, but they need to hear about me so you will be imprisoned by your own and put to death by the ones you’ve gone to share my message with.
Joseph: I’m favored by my father and will be like Jacob and rule over my older brothers, the dreams said so. God: I need you to learn humility to be great, and the hard part is I need you in a land of false gods in order to save My people. So, you’re going to be a slave. Trust me.
Esther: the worst thing that has ever happened to me is my parents were killed. Life can’t get worse than that. God: I need to you be brave. You will be taken away even from everything else you know and put in a pagan king’s house; keep your faith because, while it will cause your very life to be threatened, I will make a way out for you and your entire nation. But I need you inside the gates.
The stories go on. And as you can see…often when the plot thickens and twists, the direction God is guiding us to is, umm, not attractive…uncomfortable…questionable…punishable…frowned upon…unpopular… So it takes a lot of faith to say “ok Lord…I am willing…show me what to do.” Others are not likely to understand unless they-themselves are wholeheartedly trusting in God and have also gone through their own plot twist as well. And it is likely that you could try to explain the twist and the guidance from God over and over again to others who just don’t understand and may think your actions are misguided or “frowned upon”, but honestly explaining and arguing and whining didn’t help with any of the previously mentioned individuals…so just stop, “be still and know that I am God”. Psalm 46:10
So if this finds you looking at the road in front of you going “huh….how did I get here? NOW what do I do?” then take heart. I am, too. And know that I am praying for you as I write this. That you’ll have the courage to trust God in this leap, this twisting road, and KNOW He holds you in His hand and his purpose for you “will not be thwarted.” (Job 42:2).
