But...

"To man belong the plans of the heart, but from the Lord comes the reply of the tongue" (Pro 16:1)
"In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps." (Pro 16:9)

Over the past few months, years really, the Lord continues to bring me back to these two scriptures and others like them. There are three words that each of these scriptures share: man, the Lord, and BUT. The word that God has recently been dealing with me about is but. In His grace, God gives us the plans of our heart. He clearly says that our plans belong to us. He also gives us the power of choice and will by allowing us to plan our own courses. BUT, the reply of the tongue, the answer to all of our plans comes from the Lord. Our steps are determined by our God.

I think it's high time we take a step back and evaluate how we've allowed God's buts to be involved in our lives. Have the deepest desires of our hearts been surrendered to Him? You thought you'd be married by 30 BUT... You thought you would get that promotion BUT... You thought you would be working for the government until retirement BUT... You thought that gas prices would stay below $2.00 BUT... Let us be confident that God's buts are for the greater good of His kingdom.

~Jake Greene