When it Rains… Let it Rain!
This is a recreation of an actual photo sent by my wife and daughter in front of Universal Studios. They both stood in makeshift rain jackets, joy painted on their faces, while the rain insisted on living the experience with them. Their plans not to be fouled up by God’s nature!
Unfortunately, my daughter uses an iPhone that takes pictures in some dumb format— so you are left with this one I created.
Unfortunate picture troubles aside— this is my favorite story of the week.
Hey everyone! Teaser— you are going to like what I’m discovering about Mary Magdalene. Things that you may not have known. The story just keeps getting better and better!
Mary of Magdala: A Woman Shaped by Place
🌎The World Before the Word
The plan was clear.
You mapped the day.
Set the timing.
Knew what needed to happen and when.
There was a rhythm to it—
a sense of order.
Then something shifts.
An unexpected delay.
The weather.
A detail that refuses to cooperate.
Nothing dramatic.
Just enough to throw things off.
The plan doesn’t collapse—
it just… loosens.
But internally, it feels tighter.
Because now you’re not just moving through the day.
You’re adjusting it.
And adjustment always costs something.
The Old Reflex
The old reflex is to force the plan back into place.
Speed up.
Compensate.
Make up for lost ground.
There’s an urgency that wasn’t there before.
That same urgency you insist must be shared.
Not because the situation demands it—
but because control feels like it’s slipping.
So the day becomes a quiet negotiation between what is
and what was supposed to be.
Frustration grows, not from what’s happening,
but from the gap between expectation and reality.
🌿The new Covenant Posture
A living sacrifice holds plans with open hands.
Not loosely out of carelessness—
but lightly out of trust.
Plans are tools, not anchors.
When they shift, the posture shifts with them.
There is room to adapt
without interpreting change as loss.
The day is not ruined because it looks different.
It is simply unfolding another way.
Under the New Covenant, peace is not tied to precision.
It is rooted in presence.
And presence is not disrupted by a change in schedule.
📜 The Word
“In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.”
📖 Proverbs 16:19
This proverb reflects the long-held understanding that human intention and divine direction often work together—but not always in predictable alignment. Planning is affirmed, but outcome is not controlled.
Why it needs to be said is because we often refuse to accept the change came from God.
“Now listen, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city…’ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow… Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”
📖 Ecclesiastes 7:9
Written to early Christian communities, this passage addresses overconfidence in human planning. It is not a rejection of structure, but a reorientation of posture—one that leaves space for uncertainty without anxiety.
🤵 Pastoral Word
I’m reminded of a recent story. I had a moment and I was aware that the future was uncertain. I thought I’d clear a path and take care of something that needed to be done, or at least start it. I was told in direct and inarguable terms “We have a plan!”.
I praised the plan— but thought to myself, “why not open up the future moment to a new plan? I’m here now and can offer reprieve for what may come tomorrow.” I wasn’t to be heard.
Thus, the following day the “plan” fell apart. The planner’s ire clear that the work had to now be done while the new environments of the day was unfolding in the moment. The scaffolding around them, you might think, was collapsing.
The only unfortunate part of the story is that everyone had to endure the new stress of that environment.
All because of “a plan”.
You see, a plan might feel good up front— and it is, especially when the plan reflects joyous occasions of the future. So I offer, make plans for joy, not simply for the accomplishment of a task.
And when the plans work its way far from your original vision, feel peace in that. Find a way to enjoy the storm— not if you can enjoy the storm— but how you will enjoy the storm.
I know for certain my wife and daughter are doing just that as they have joyous adventures in Florida this week— rain or shine! Well done ladies!
🙏 Let's Pray
As you move through this day,
may you carry your plans with open hands.
When things shift—
as they often do—
may your spirit remain steady.
Not because everything stays on track,
but because your peace is not tied to the plan.
May you recognize the difference
between what you intended
and what is unfolding—
and feel no need to force them back together.
May you adapt without frustration,
adjust without tension,
and continue forward without losing your center.
You are not behind.
You are not off course.
You are simply walking a path
that is revealing itself in real time.
And in that unfolding,
may you find a quiet confidence—
that you are held,
that you are guided,
and that even here,
this moment is enough.
🔥Carry this With You Today
I hold my plans lightly and move with what comes.
