Does God plan our lives? Dive into that question—and answers from the Bible—with Pastor Josh Weidmann. Then share this information with teens when they ask about God’s will and does God plan our lives.
Many times I’ve wondered where this thing is headed. Life seems off the rails, and I wonder who’s in control. Does God have a plan for me? Are all things really working together for my good and His glory (Romans 8:28-29)?
Even in Loss, God Has My Gain in Mind
Imagine about 10 grieving people standing in a circle. Most are crying but all are singing. “He gives and takes away. He gives and takes away… My heart will choose to say, blessed be your name.”
Every person in that circle had lost someone they loved. They were on a retreat to deal with their grief. Nancy and Greg had lost their son to a drowning accident. Sue and Tom buried their college-age daughter who had overdosed. And Sean and Susan said goodbye to Susan’s mom after a brutal battle with liver cancer.
They had studied Revelation 1:18, “I hold the keys of death and the grave.” Then they burst into song. Afterward, Greg spoke through tears, “I have wanted to believe that my son’s death caught God by surprise,” he said. “But now I realize he was not surprised at all.”[i]
Death forces us to reckon with God’s sovereignty in order to make sense of circumstances and have peace amid loss. Any time our circumstances don’t make sense, we’re forced to wonder if God has a strategy in all this mess.
Does God Plan Our Lives?
Let’s explore the question “Does God plan our lives?” from a biblical perspective. Then I’ll share important application points.
First, understand that God always has a plan. He leaves nothing to chance; no molecule is outside His rule. Because God created all things, he has all power and all knowledge of everything in creation. Isaiah 46:9–11 (NLT) says,
9 Remember the things I have done in the past.
For I alone am God!
I am God, and there is none like me.
10 Only I can tell you the future
before it even happens.
Everything I plan will come to pass,
for I do whatever I wish.
11 I will call a swift bird of prey from the east—
a leader from a distant land to come and do my bidding.
I have said what I would do,
and I will do it.
Scripture is clear that God has a plan for the whole world and for each person. He is God; there is no one like Him. What God purposes and plans He will do. God knew us before we came to be (Psalm 139). Before the beginning of time, He had a plan for us (Romans 8:29). God’s plan is never reactive but always preemptive. All time is present before Him at the same time. He sees all, and nothing happens outside of His knowledge and power.
Two Wills
Knowing that God has a plan doesn’t fully answer our question. Does God plan our lives? If so, why don’t I always know or understand God’s plan?
John Calvin spoke of the double will of God. He didn’t mean God has two wills; instead, we should think of God’s will two ways.
First is the secret will of God. Before time, God designed all things for His glory and our good. We get to know His secret will only as He unfolds it in history. Even then, we know it only in part.
Second is the revealed will of God. This plan is declared in His Word. God has a plan for our salvation (2 Peter 3:9). He designed us each with unique gifts He wants us to use (Ephesians 2:10). And He has a plan for our life after death—eternity spent with Him if we have faith in Christ.
