Things I Learned at Seminary - God Is In Control

Whoa...I typed the 'God is in control' line and had a flashback to an old school Twila Paris song...it's a random flashback! Worth a good laugh if you're bored.

Anyway, I surely learned that. This is actually something that I realized going to, going through, and finishing up seminary. It all began way back in 2007 as I was trying to decide where I was going to seminary...some of you know the story. I decided I wanted to go to Beeson Divinity School. I didn't get in. Then I decided I wanted to go to a seminary extension in Nashville and get a cool job in a church to work while I was taking my classes. I completely had my life planned out. To make a long story short, once I bought in to the Lord's plan, I realized my plan wasn't what God wanted, so I ended up in New Orleans.

Throughout seminary I was faced with some of the hardest semesters of my life: academic rigors, socially, responsibility lessons, relationships, loss, stress, and the like. My seminary years were brutally difficult, and I think seminary is designed to be that way.

Then I graduated, and now I find myself moving to Immanuel Baptist Church in Lexington, KY to be the Student Pastor. This situation seems like the Lord has completely hand crafted it for me, and I'm very excited about it.

How is all of this possible? I'm completely convinced that there is no way all of these things come together by any means other than there is a God who is in control. I'm convinced. God wanted me in New Orleans, and He closed a door and opened my eyes to lead me there. God had extra-curricular lessons he wanted me to learn, and He delivered them. God had a place for me upon graduation, and He made this church opportunity work out to send me there. I could go into vast amounts of detail, but I'm sure that would bore you to death. Suffice it to say that all this is not possible without God having a plan, and working it out in my life.

It is a quite popular verse, but I've seen it played out time and time again in my life: "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11. I'm confident that the Lord is in control. What about you? Reflect on some things that have occurred in your own life! Can you see how the Lord was steering that? Can you see that God was working out His plan and the He was in control of those moments? I know it is a simple truth, but it is a lesson that sticks out to me from my time at seminary. Have you trusted that Jesus is enough and God is in control? I've got much love for you...