What's Meant For You Will Not Pass You By

It's Bailee on the blog today! I wrote this piece a while back and wanted to share it today! Hope you enjoy :)

We can idolize so many things in our lives. Looking back on my life, I can see so many ways that my idols have shaped how I lived my days. Back in seventh grade, when I idolized my athletic performance, my day was shaped by how much I could exercise and how little I could eat. These things encompassed nearly all of my brain space and left room for hardly anything else. 

Fast forward a couple years, and academics and my performance in FFA soon took over the throne of my heart. My entire being was wrapped up in my ability to perform perfectly and be the “smartest” one in the room. 

Then, sophomore year of college, I found myself in a similar situation as in middle school- again wrapped up in an eating disorder. 

Soon to follow would be my fear that I would somehow miss out on God’s plan for my life if I wasn’t in the right place at the right time. Namely, I would miss out on meeting the people I’m supposed to. 

It didn’t stop in the physical, but also trickled into the virtual. I believed I needed to post the right things at the right time and follow the right people at the right time.

I wasted precious brain space doing mental gymnastics over where I needed to be and what I needed to do or say to be seen or chosen. 

It was all up to me, or so I thought. 

Luckily, my efforts either didn’t work, or worked- but then wound up not working down the road. 

The amount of time I spent anxiously planning is not something I’m proud of, but it is also not something I will hide because I know this is something that is common to the human experience. 

It is also a part of many people’s stories if they are not truly putting their faith in God. 

I know this is true for me. Each time I choose to prioritize “the plot” or my personal plan OVER prayer and petition, I’m met with pandemonium time and time again. 

In my life, I have found that even my most carefully planned methods to be chosen- the social media schemes, best outfits, ideal diet and workout regime, and seemingly perfect placing of myself- do not always provide me with what I desire. 

Recently, I have felt God telling me that I have tried everything but giving up. Not giving up in the way of believing that success, love, and happiness is not possible for myself, but giving up by believing that I have100% control over my life and how it pans out. 

Giving up doesn’t mean finding something else to put my identity in like the devil wants me to do. It doesn't mean going back to my eating disorder. It doesn’t mean going back to putting all my worth in academics. It doesn’t mean adopting an “I don’t need anyone attitude.” It doesn't mean replacing one obsession with another. 

It doesn’t mean sitting around and doing nothing either. To me, giving up means doing my job and letting God do His. It means being honest with myself about what I know God is asking me to do in this season. 

It’s all about the posture of my heart, truly. When my heart is content, I am free to pursue excellence in the things God has put in front of me and in the things I love. Since Jesus has already filled me, I can study, workout, dress nicely, post on social media, hangout with friends, be kind to those around me, serve, write, and dream without the fear of failure or the urgency to perform for the approval of others. 

I have had to check my heart so many times in my life, and there is one way I know that my heart is in the wrong place. 

Namely, this is when I feel a sense of urgency to act in a non-urgent situation. In other words, it’s the belief that I have to act NOW or else I might miss out on what God has for me. 

When I am feeling the urge to post, act, workout, or react compulsively, I remind myself that anything I would gain from acting out of this state of my heart is not something I truly want. 

I remind myself that I would much rather look back on my life and see God’s faithful fingerprints than my controlling death grips. 

I remind myself that what’s meant for me will not pass me by and that this is confirmed in multiple places in Scripture. Let’s take the story of David for example. 

Read 1 Samuel Chapter 16. Verses 7-13 below: 

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” 

Then Jesse called Abinadab and had him pass in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, “The Lord has not chosen this one either.” Jesse then had Shammah pass by, but Samuel said, “Nor has the Lord chosen this one.” Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, “The Lord has not chosen these.” So he asked Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?”

“There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered. “He is tending the sheep.”

Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.”

So he sent for him and had him brought in. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features.

Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.”

So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David. Samuel then went to Ramah.

This story reminds me of something Pastor Grant Troutt said in a podcast one day- 

I think there are so many young people right now, especially with social media, that believe that their time has to be now. They believe that if “I don’t put myself in front of people, maybe God will miss me.” They think they have to put themselves out there and market themselves and go “I’m here,” or else God may miss them. (1)

Of course, the truth is that God is not going to forget about you. In fact, when we feel forgotten, it is usually because God is hiding us for purpose. Grant gave the example of how film develops to explain this. 

To develop film, it has to go in a dark, black isolated room. And that’s where the film develops to the high quality, crisp picture that it ultimately turns out to be. A lot of people are wanting to open that door and let the light in and get the spotlight too soon, and they're ruining the picture that God wants to develop. (1)

Grant’s message aligns a lot with the message we can learn from the story of David.

David was anointed as king when he was out being faithful behind the scenes in the places God placed Him in. 

The king did not offer David as an option until he was specifically asked if he had any more sons. He wanted to cover up the fact that he was an option. 

The odds were against David. But his elevation was inevitable. 

Also crazy is that it was nearly 15 years between the time that he was anointed king and when he actually became king.

Instead of taking the position he was promised, David waited for God to move him from the pasture to the palace.

When we feel the need to make ourselves seen, we can remember that David was found when he was being “hidden.”

Also, a lot of times we think our school, our dedication to our passion, or our commitment to our values will keep us from meeting the people we are supposed to. But we must understand that our busy schedule and our commitment to stewarding the things God has put in front of us will not stop God’s plan for us.

The fear of not being in the right place at the right time or missing what is meant for you can certainly be paralyzing. 

But even harder is gaining the world through but losing your soul. 

How prideful are we to convince ourselves that we are powerful enough to mess up God’s plan for our life. 

How to practically apply: 

If surrendering something for a lifetime seems hard, consider what you could leave in God’s hands just for a day. If a day still seems like too much, consider what burdens you could give Him in this moment.

The important thing is that you continuously come back to Him. 

As with anything else, surrender gets easier with consistency. 

When anxiety tells you to post, to promote yourself, or to push past God’s timing, see how long you can procrastinate control. 

Growing closer to God is not the result of “trying harder” but of surrendering more

Madison Prewett Troutt

References

1. Clinton, Z. (Host). (2023, November 28). How to Get Comfortable Being Uncomfortable [Audio podcast episode]. In The Built Different Podcast. Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/episode/1LNqRO5sDb2uhjzZRNdATo