1. Have a greater confidence that God has a plan for our lives, (Jeremiah 29:11, Proverbs 3:26)
2. Know how to find God’s plan for our lives and walk in it, (Romans 12:1-2, Psalm 119:105, Psalm 25:14, Hebrews 4:12)
3. Realize that God’s plan opens the door to His protection, His provision and His leading, (Psalm 91:9-10, Psalm 37:25, Proverbs 3:5-6)
God is Good, Good is Not Always God
There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death. Proverbs 14:12
Who God is and everything He does is good. However, not everything that seems good is from God. Satan knows this, and even uses it to try to get us off the path. When Eve was in the garden with the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, she was not tempted by the evil side. She was tempted from the good side! Genesis 3:6-7 says, “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.” Eve saw that the tree was good, pleasant, and desirable. Satan tempted Jesus the same way in Matthew 4:8-9. “Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.” Satan was tempting Jesus with “glorious” kingdoms of the world that were created by God. He uses things that appear good and will even transform himself into an angel of light and his minions into ministers of righteousness to get us off the path (2 Corinthians 11:14-15).
To not be deceived, we must make sure our reference point for what is good is the Word of God and what He has revealed to us through the Holy Spirit. The problem arises when people relate their definition of good to their circumstances. For example, say you get offered a new job making twice the salary you are now. In reference to your current financial state, this “seems” good. However, if God has not told you to change jobs (John 16:13), it is actually an evil trap of the enemy masked to appear good. Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” It works the opposite direction also. Say God has told you to move to the worst neighborhood in the state as shown by the crime rate. In the natural, this seems like a bad move. However, if it looks bad, smells bad, tastes bad, and feels bad, but God says it is good, then it is good.
Jude 1:20 – But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit,
1 Corinthians 14:15-17 –15 What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding. 16 Otherwise, if you bless with the spirit, how will he who occupies the place of the uninformed say “Amen” at your giving of thanks, since he does not understand what you say? 17 For you indeed give thanks well, but the other is not edified.
Bonus: 1 Corinthians 12:7-11 – 7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all:8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by ]the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.