Have you ever had one of those weeks where absolutely nothing goes according to plan? If you’re a living, breathing human, there’s a high likelihood that your schedule has been fed through the shredder on multiple occasions.

As I write this little blog post, I’m sitting under the canopy of a magnificent Banyan tree about four hours away from home. While, I love writing in this idyllic spot under this ancient tree, that was not part of the plan I’d chalked up for this week.

This week, I was supposed to watch our son’s school play, go to my niece’s Monster High birthday party, get some organizing projects done around the house, bake my dad a cake for his 79^th birthday, and of course, lose at least three pounds—although that last bit was more of a nebulous hope than an actual “expectation.” But here I am, sitting under a Banyan tree, a four-hour drive from home.

It’s been an unexpected week where I’ve barely glanced at my to-do list, let alone had the chance to throw it away.

Late last week, my husband was suddenly scheduled for surgery. While it wasn’t an emergency surgery, it couldn’t be delayed either. We decided to get the procedure done at a reputed Christian hospital four hours away from where we live.

This last week entailed long drives back and forth, achy backs, overcrowded waiting rooms with barely any standing room (as this hospital serves the poor from different parts of India, its hallways are filled to capacity), uncomfortable tests, a three-hour surgery, pokes and prods, drips and oozes, post-op pain, and on and on it goes. As I said, nothing that was on my to-do list.

We are now staying at a guest house recovering and waiting to wrap up post-surgery appointments before we head home. That’s given us a moment to pause. And I got to pause under the shade of a magnificent Banyan tree next to the house, with a Bible and my journal.

While I don’t recommend this “method” of Bible reading, my Bible fell open to Psalm 33. As I read Scripture, I chuckled to myself because it said right there: The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; he frustrates the plans of the peoples.

Boy, that word, “frustrates” really rang true this week.

But as I paused under that majestic tree and looked up at the wide embrace of its branches, I was reminded that we were covered under the canopy of His grace. The terrain beneath our feet sloped off in different directions this week. Some patches were rough and rocky. But there was a covering over it all.

Psalm 33 goes on to compare our ways to God’s ways: The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations.

While our schedules may fall apart, God’s plans remain firm. And they aren’t just generic plans for all people everywhere. They are the plans of His heart for you and for me. Friends, how sweet those words. The plans of His Heart! His loving plans. His beautiful plans. His redeeming plans. His sovereign plans. His cannot-be-messed-with plans.

Along with the birds that sing at different pitches on that tree, I too sing a song of praise. It’s a selah moment after the crazy of the last week. It’s an unhurried moment during an unexpected week.

I would urge you to seek those moments too when your well-laid plans start to crumble.  May we learn to pause. May we posture our hearts in praise. And may that praise shift our very perspective.

Instead of the trials, I remembered the nurse who spent time earnestly praying for my husband before he was wheeled in for surgery, the kindness of the hospital staff as they cleaned the room multiple times a day, the retired doctor friend (our angel in disguise) who accompanied us on all our appointments, the prayers of our friends which carried us along, family who stood with us (literally) through this time. As my perspective shifted, there were only more reasons to praise God. It was a beautiful cycle. Pause, Praise, Perspective. Repeat.

Yes, the week was unexpected and maybe unwelcome in some ways. But it didn’t take God by surprise. He knew what awaited us. And He went before us and prepared the way.

When the ground beneath you feels unsteady, know that you are covered by a canopy of undeserved grace.

 

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