My Life Verse Story

Here it is, folks:

Proverbs 16:9

“The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.”

And all the people said Amen.

This verse is so simple, yet so profound. Which makes me ponder on every word.

Why? I’m glad you asked.

Listen, I ain’t perfect which means my plans won’t be either. I like making plans and I want to make plans because I don’t want to be late to anything or unprepared - I want to be organized and have everything the way I planned. Can you relate?

Where the story began: Verba, Ukraine

News flash! That doesn’t always happen.

My mind thinks: What’s the point of making plans when I don’t even know what can happen the next second?

That’s where trusting God plays a vital role. I trust that God placed those plans in my schedule for a particular reason and ultimately, if those plans happen or not, it will be for the glory of the Lord.

It’s time for a real-life example.

A few years ago, a conference was held at my church. During this conference, seminars took place to give people more information about a certain topic (finance, missionary, etc.) they were interested in.

Try to find the dog!

I was overwhelmed with all of the options, but my friend and I decided to attend the missionary seminar to get a peek for what’s going on behind the scenes and listen to what it’s like to go overseas and proclaim the gospel.

At least, that’s all I wanted to do - listen.

And listen I did… to my mom’s voice saying that night when I came home: “I can’t believe you’re going on your first missionary trip!”

Let me explain.

The man that was speaking during the seminar said something quite fascinating: “I didn’t want to go to Ukraine. In fact, I submitted my documents to go to Russia three times, but God sent me to Ukraine either way. There, I found His hand working in ways I never thought I would. I realized His plans will always be higher, greater, and more powerful.”

That day, I went up to the missionary trip leader and told him I want to serve overseas. Something I thought I'd never say. But...

This is only the first half!

There were no available spots for Ukraine, Russia, or Belarus. All of the groups were already formed - no one could sign up anymore. By the grace of God, the leader told me a few days later there was an opening, and I had to let him know if I was in or not.

I was in.

And the adventure began.

Here’s the thing, I literally only had a couple of months to pack and read over the bible school materials for the children. There was a lot of preparing to be done. Even being emotionally prepared was difficult. I seriously had no idea what I’m getting myself into.

Long story short, there were a few hurdles that I had to go through in order to end up in Verba, Ukraine that winter. But I went, and never regretted a minute of it. I met an amazing friend who walked beside me through my first missionary trip journey, and I saw God working in the children's lives and my life like never before.

My amazing team :)

This verse holds a very dear place in my heart - we can make as many plans as we want, but God is the only One that will lead us to where He wants us to be.

And that’s the story behind one of my life verses :)