Daily Devotional - The Finished Work - 2026 Month of Prayer - Day 23 - 9/23/26 - "God's Plans"

Author: Evangelist Jamie Hoffman

“God’s Plans”
Scripture: Jeremiah 29:11, NIV

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Devotion:
I love planning. When my family and I go on vacation, I create an itinerary for the places I want us to visit. When they want to veer from my plans, I get a little salty. I tell them we sleep and watch T. V at home, but when we're on vacation, we should be out and about. Imagine if I get upset about my well-laid natural plans, how frustrating it is for God when we don’t trust His divine plan for our lives.

The context for today’s Scripture was God using the prophet Jeremiah to write a letter to the Israelites and let them know that despite their current situation of exile in Babylon, God still had a plan for their lives. In the previous verses, God encouraged them to go on living their lives despite their displacement. He encouraged them to pray for their city and to rebuke the lies of the false prophets.

We can apply these same principles today. What do we do when it feels like we are living in opposite day all the time? We continue to trust God at His Word. We continue to be faithful, obedient, and to pray. If God said it, it will surely come to pass. We serve an intentional God, and He has a divine plan for every one of us. His plans are better than anything we could ever imagine for ourselves.

Just like the Israelites in today’s Scripture, you may be experiencing a period right now where you feel you are all alone or in exile, but God has never left your side. All you have to do is call on Him, and allow Him to come into your heart. He has a perfect plan and will for your life. His plans are to “prosper you” and “give you a hope and a future.”

Prayer:
God, thank You for the plans You have for us. Help us trust You at Your Word and obey You in every area of our lives. We are leaning on and depending on You. Amen.