Adapted from GracefullyFrank.Blogspot.com
Pretty little words are everywhere. Words crafted and overlaid on pretty little pictures. Some make us laugh, some stir up our loyalty, some make us dream a bigger dream than we dreamt a minute ago, and some pull us deep into bitter or sweet old memories. Words have a lot of power.
Words can be true and not true. Sometimes the exact same words are true in one instance, yet not true in another. It’s not the words themselves that make them true or not true; it’s the circumstances and the motives of the one who speaks, whispers, types, twists, sings, and uses them.
For instance, let’s look at these words: “What Is Meant for You Won’t Pass By You”
Those are pretty. There is something in the reassurance that can settle a racing heart, encourage a rejected soul, lift crying eyes, and set a face like flint. A pretty little mantra can lift us up from someplace low. I am disappointed, but “What is meant for me will not pass me by. What is meant for me will not pass me by.”
As we scroll through social media and come across little bits of inspiration, we should stop for a second and ask, “What does that even mean?” Pretty little words can be encouraging when they are true, and yet they can also be deceptive when they are not true. That deception can keep us headed in a wrong direction. When we apply pretty little words that are not true, it can be like putting our hands over our ears and singing “la la la la la” to drown out true words that are spoken to us—true words that could lift us from a pit instead of making us comfortable in it. When words are true, they set us free. When words are not true, they keep us chained.
What would it take for these particular words to be true or not true? “What is meant for you will not pass you by.”
First, who is it that has what is meant for you? Where is what is meant for you currently? Who put what is meant for you in motion so that it is heading toward you? Is it God? Is it your own personal output? Is it chance? Does the word meant cancel out the word chance?
If you do believe in God, and you believe God, then you probably believe somewhere in your gut that God has a plan. Do your life and actions demonstrate that belief or is that belief somewhere over on the sidelines as you go about running plays? His Word says He created each of us for a purpose. That blows my mind because there are a whole lot of “us.” However, we don’t have to be able to grasp it in order to trust it. In faith, we step out and experience it, and then our trust and faith are confirmed.
Here is the thing though about the pretty little words above: What is meant for you can and will pass you by. If we believe God has the hand in what is meant for us, then unless we position ourselves in His hand, our meant for us will pass right by.
God’s meant isn’t about a specific person, place or thing. His meant has so much more to do with our hearts in any circumstance (read Paul’s words in Philippians 4) than it does with our specific circumstances. Nevertheless, as we begin to live out our meant, specific people and places and things do come with it.
Our eternal salvation is not contingent on continually being placed well. The moment we are placed in Christ, our salvation is secure. God’s grace is amazing. The cross of Christ was sufficient for eternity. It was and is meant for us in this life. It is our unique path and purpose determined by our Creator that can be missed. He says He will guide us if we walk in faith and let His Word light the way—His true Word. It is a tragedy if we let ourselves be satisfied with being sedated by pretty little words as we walk along any old path.
We should demand our path; cutting through distraction, temptation, and rejection, trekking over mountains and through valleys with faces set like flint to get on our path. Wherever you sit or walk today, you can begin to go after it. There is no age limit. There is no “righteousness requirement” or “level” of holiness you have to reach before you begin. It’s a choice and determination. It doesn’t mean all your circumstances will change. It means your whole life will change even in your existing circumstances. That is what God does when we say the word yes.
- Then, those pretty little words are true.
- Then, we can know that we are directly in the path of our meant, in plenty or in want.
- Then, even when confusing, we can rest in the sovereignty of the One who created us for a purpose.
- Then, there is peace.
This Man Missed His Meant
The rich young ruler who asked Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life (Luke 18:18-30) believed Jesus was good. He believed Jesus was the right one to ask, and that He had the answer. If this ruler was scrolling through reading inspirational quotes from Jesus, he likely would have shared them on his own wall, tweeted them to his followers, posted the picture on his own site, and would have been inspired, too. Yet, apparently, the ruler was satisfied with just the pretty little words. He was not actually ready to follow them into the path of what was meant for him. Jesus told him to get rid of what was in between them (for him, it was wealth), and to, “Come, follow me.”
Not everyone in Scripture got the specific game plan of “Come, follow me” during Christ’s life on the earth. Some people He healed and then told to go and tell everyone. Others He healed and then told to go and not tell anyone. Some He taught then walked to the next village to teach others. And to some, He said, “Come, follow me.” Here was this ruler’s meant for him handed to him through the words of Christ Himself. The ruler hung his head in sadness. He chose otherwise because the cost seemed too great. He went home to the life of his choosing, that probably still blessed him with fruits of this earth, but he missed what was meant. One life was maybe more comfortable than the other, but assuredly less fulfilling than if he was fulfilling his meant for him. He had the freedom to choose. So do we.
These pretty little words were not true for the rich young ruler. If he went back to the house after his encounter with Jesus and wrote them on his bathroom mirror to encourage his heart, then these pretty little words would have been his deception that kept him on the wrong path. There are a lot of examples of people missing their meant for them in the Bible, including King Saul and Samson. And there are a lot of examples of people stepping into their meant for them by faith and obedience, such as Ruth and Paul.
Will these pretty little words be true or not true for you? Every single morning, we have the opportunity to choose for them to be true as we lay down reins we think we hold and take faith steps toward the One who holds what is meant for us.
Haley Scully, MA, is the Vice President of Strategic and Ministry Projects with Hope for the Heart. In 2011, she began her work in the ministry’s counseling department before moving into the international work. She serves to develop partnerships, coordinate resources and distribution methods, and provide basic counseling and care ministry training for church leaders and parachurch organizations in over 25 countries around the world. Haley concurrently helps provide leadership for professional development initiatives that include training and resourcing Christian caregivers, life coaches, and counselors. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Communications from Oklahoma State University and Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Counseling from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Haley is passionate about connecting hurting hearts to hope in Christ and the practical application of God’s Word to their everyday lives. She is a speaker, author, trainer, and serves as a guest host on June Hunt’s live, one-hour, call-in counseling program, Hope In The Night.
Haley Scully, MA, is the Vice President of Strategic and Ministry Projects with Hope for the Heart. In 2011, she began her work in the ministry’s counseling department before moving into the international work. She serves to develop partnerships, coordinate resources and distribution methods, and provide basic counseling and care ministry training for church leaders and parachurch organizations in over 25 countries around the world. Haley concurrently helps provide leadership for professional development initiatives that include training and resourcing Christian caregivers, life coaches, and counselors. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Communications from Oklahoma State University and Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Counseling from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Haley is passionate about connecting hurting hearts to hope in Christ and the practical application of God’s Word to their everyday lives. She is a speaker, author, trainer, and serves as a guest host on June Hunt’s live, one-hour, call-in counseling program, Hope In The Night.
