Noble Plans
“ But the noble man devises noble plans and by noble plans he stands.” Isaiah 32:8
“ But the noble man devises noble plans and by noble plans he stands.” Isaiah 32:8
This week I found myself with a certain seven-year-old friend of mine perusing the isles of a local grocery and office supply store. I was there to get one thing but when I saw the school supplies I had to stop, noticing so many items that I could use for the upcoming school year. Flash cards, practice workbooks to take my students further, and even some classroom decorations that might make it seem more fun to be there all found their way into the shopping cart. As I looked around, I wondered what the kids would be like this year; who would be my class clown and who would be my class secretary? I wondered how they would react to me, and how my teaching style will affect them.
Although there are yet at a couple more weeks until school starts, planning is now kicking up into high gear. Ideally I would have started even earlier, but as it is, everyday some new classroom idea or lesson plan thought works its way into my daily schedule. My excitement is growing as I’ve already returned to school and talked with the other teacher on my team about field trips, classroom themes, and of course, the discipline plan. These conversations can be tedious and extremely detailed at times, but by the time the school year comes, they will have been worth their weight in gold. By my fifth year of teaching I’ve seen first hand how a little bit of forethought can pay huge dividends in the class later. So it is, that we eagerly lay our plans before God, asking that He would guy our footsteps in this school year as we not only teach core subjects, but make disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Now I realize that despite our best plans things will inevitably go awry. Some lesson plans won’t work out as effectively as you hoped, some kids will choose to do things they shouldn’t, some parents will blame you for everything no matter what their kid does wrong, and some days will just be off days. Nevertheless, I’ve discovered that the longer I spend planning outside of the classroom, the better things go in it. I’ve heard some people say they don’t plan and just, “Rely on the leading of the Spirit,” but is the Spirit of God so limited that He cannot lead our plans as we pray for His guidance? God didn’t plan the world in a helter skelter way, so I wonder why we think we can lead His people, especially his little precious one in such a fashion. I believe that it honors God when think enough of the work He has given us to do that we consult Him and ask for His guidance as to the best way to do it before we start. After all Jesus said, “For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesn’t sit down and compute the costto see if he has enough money to complete it?” (Luke 14:28). Building a tower takes planning, and we are building a foundation in the Lord, so we of all people should plan well that we build on a foundation of Christ with materials worthy of our King.
Whether we are teachers, pastors, parents, or servants in any number of ministries, we owe it to those we serve and the God we serve to plan well so that they might know Him. For anyone who is reading this, I have prayed for you that God would give you the time to plan, clear guidance, and blessings upon your plans that they may be what He would want to glorify His name amongst the nations.
P.S. Practical tips in planning: PRAY, use a calendar, write down your ideas and prioritize them, get yourself a good filing system, set short term goals, and enlist the help of someone who is better at planning than you are! J
