Broken Stick

It happens to everyone. You had a wide-open net; your teammate worked hard to pass the puck through three defenders to you. You wind up for the one timer, and just put some weight on your stick to slam the puck home, you hear a crack, and the bottom portion of your stick goes flying into the corner, and the puck goes right by you. Not what you had planned.

Everyone has these moments - the times where we ask, "Why, God, did my stick have to break? Why did I lose my job? Why didn’t I get into that college or make that team? Why didn’t that relationship work?" It can be very hard to maintain perspective right when the stick breaks - but in Jeremiah 29:11, the Lord says, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

In Scripture, we see many stories of ‘broken sticks’ - where things don’t go as the people we read about thought they might. Joseph was checking on his brothers when they betrayed him and sold him into slavery. David was taking a break from shepherding to take food to his brothers when he heard Goliath taunting the armies of Israel and felt called to fight. Daniel was praying to God when he was tossed into the lion’s den. But God shut the mouths of the lions and raised Daniel up as a great Prophet. God used David to slay Goliath and become king over Israel. God raised Joseph out of slavery to be 2nd in command over all of Egypt.

So we see that even though Joseph, David, and Daniel went through very unexpected, seemingly wrong, events - God was in control and had plans to use these events. In Jeremiah 29, God told the Israelites they were going to spend 70 years in exile before reassuring them, "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."

When we come to one of those times when things go unexpectedly wrong (or different than we planned), whether it is losing a job or being cut from a team - we need to keep in mind that we are not to worry about tomorrow, the Lord wants us to trust Him - especially in the challenging times. We are to have faith and depend on Him, and when we worry about tomorrow, we are not having faith. Philippians 4:6-7, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

When your stick breaks, or you lose your job, or you get cut from a team, remember, it’s not the end of the world! In fact, it might be the beginning of something much better from God. It may seem tough, but the Lord has a plan for you. (Jeremiah 29:11)

• What are some aspects of your future that you have not turned over to Christ?
• Can you recall any “broken stick” moments in your life? How did things turn out?
• What can you do to rely on Jesus more than yourself, and/or your plans for your future?