Occasionally we face considerable difficulties determining what God's will is for our lives. At times, it 's hard for us to figure out what God's will is in a matter, and it's particularly hard when we get it in our heads that we need to do things a specific way (our way). We often have the attitude, Lord, I’ll do anything you need me to do as long, as it's something I am comfortable doing.

The truth be told, what God has in mind for us, often conflicts with the plans we have in mind for our lives. Look, I understand the influence of positive thinking and the value of having a vision of where you want to be, what you want to accomplish and how you plan on getting there. The problem comes about when life doesn’t work out the way we want it to. In all actuality, life is not always going to turn out the way we thought it would. Sometimes life gets in the way of our dreams, not every dream is going to be achieved. You see, we come up with a plan, but God has a different plan in mind.

Our lives are full of things that never were, goals that are unmet, dreams that are unfulfilled and prayers that appear to be unanswered. Unfortunately, life rarely turns out exactly how we planned it. We all have this image, this picture of how everything will turn out. Dreams of going here, there and everywhere, but God says no, and we end up someplace that wasn’t part of what we had pictured for our life. Life wasn’t supposed to turn out this way. Maybe right now, in your life, you’re struggling with this. Life hasn’t turned out the way you wanted it to. So, the question is, what do you do about it?

First, we need to accept the fact that there are some things we absolutely have no control over. Our life is not our own, and things are sometimes out of our control. Second, we need to learn to be content even when things don’t go the way we want them to. The songwriter said, “Whatever my lot thou hast taught me to say, it is well, it is well, with my soul.” And finally, we must look around, and see things as they are, and appreciate the beauty of it. As messy as it might be, we should be grateful that we experience it. Remember this, life is what it is, smile, and be grateful for what is. Learn to love life, as it is right now, without fantasies, without wishing things were different because, in the end, it is what it is.