As I write this, dear Husband’s elderly mother is hospitalized due to complications from a respiratory virus. She loves God and has spent her life helping people. Going home to Heaven has great appeal to her. We’re torn between wanting her to feel better here and wanting her to feel better permanently there. Our emotions are up and down like a buoy in big waves. Also tugging on our emotions is a favorite relative who just got a life-threatening diagnosis.  Aside from this personal pain, we’re pained for our divided country that spawned an attempted assassination.  Yet amid uncertainty, we have an anchor for our souls. God is in control and he has a good plan.  King David and the prophet Jeremiah understood this foundational truth and passed it on to us in soul-soothing words. God is in charge. No matter our circumstances, God has a plan for our good.

When things seem to spiral out of control we remember that God started the universe and he has always been in charge. His mighty words brought everything into existence. And his words of promise carry us.
“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
And by the breath of His mouth all their host…Let all the earth fear the Lord;
Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.
For He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast.” Psalm 33:6,8-9

When we shake our heads and sigh about the world, we rest in the fact that God will accomplish his plan. Our era hasn’t puzzled him. From Adam to the last baby born on this earth, God is working to bring his good plan to completion.
“The counsel of the Lord stands forever,
The plans of His heart from generation to generation.” Psalm 33:11

When we can’t find a solution, we remind ourselves that his plan is for the good of his people. He isn’t watching us with an eye to condemn us, but to deliver us.
“Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him,
On those who hope (wait) for His lovingkindness,
To deliver their soul from death
And to keep them alive in famine.” Psalm 33:18-19

When we get agitated and worried about our circumstances, we trust that he will help us each day. He is our shield protecting us.
“Our soul waits for the Lord;
He is our help and our shield.” Psalm 33:20

When painful thoughts come, we can turn to our God who gives us enduring happiness. We can always be happy when we think about God.
“For our heart rejoices in Him,
Because we trust in His holy name.” Psalm 33:21

God has good plans for us!  (In spite of tough stuff.) But to enjoy his good plan, we need to do things his way. God is good to us all the time, but there is special happiness when we come close to him. When we are disobedient and ignore his words he still provides for us, but we don’t enjoy the happiness he longs to give his obedient children. Long ago in Israel’s history, he had to send his wayward people into captivity not to throw them away, but to put them in a place where they would sincerely call on him.  Sometimes God puts us in difficult circumstances to remind us that we desperately need him.  Yet his heart is always inclined to us and he yearns for us to draw near.

“This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. 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. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.” Jeremiah 29:10-14

Loving Others
When we seek God and do what pleases him, we have assurance that we will receive what God promises. Loving him and loving others are his primary commands.   Our loving actions to others prove our love for God.   This obedience shows that we trust the God who promises to give us life eternal.

“God… will not forget how hard you have worked for him and how you have shown your love to him by caring for other believers, as you still do. Our great desire is that you will keep on loving others as long as life lasts, in order to make certain that what you hope for will come true… you will follow the example of those who are going to inherit God’s promises because of their faith and endurance. . . Then Abraham waited patiently, and he received what God had promised.” Hebrews 6:10-12,15

Great confidence
We have great confidence not in ourselves, but in God. We know God is trustworthy. He doesn’t lie. So we run to him for safety. No matter what is trying to harm us- fears, doubts, betrayal, confrontations, pain, disappointments- we find refuge in our faithful God. He will help us now and he will deliver us safely to his heavenly dwelling place. Having this hope for a happy eternal future, gives us stability in life’s storms. We know God is close to us not because we are worthy but because Jesus is our priest mediating for us with God. He is with us and for us. Our future is secure.

“So God has given both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore, we who have fled to him for refuge can have great confidence as we hold to the hope that lies before us. This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary. Jesus has already gone in there for us. He has become our eternal High Priest in the order of Melchizedek.” Hebrews 6:18-20

In the Old Testament, God provided a way for  his people to come close to him.  He gave Moses a plan for constructing the Tabernacle, a special tent and courtyard where his people could worship him.  The people had to stay in the courtyard where they brought sacrifices.  Only the priests could enter the tent where they offered sacrifices of incense, tended the menorah, and refreshed the symbolic bread.  And only the high priest could enter the inner part of the tent through a special curtain where the Ark of the Covenant and a cloud represented God’s Presence.  The high priest could only enter God’s Presence once a year and only with an animal’s sacrificial blood to atone for the sins of the people.  When Jesus offered his own blood as a sacrifice to God, he opened the curtain so that all believers have access to God.  This hope/trust anchors us safely in God so we don’t drift away or are driven away by the strong winds of trouble and doubt.  We’re secure in him no matter what!