When the Plan Doesn’t Go as Planned

August 17, 2026

Scripture: Isaiah 42–44 & John 16:7–13

Key Verse: “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” — Isaiah 43:19

The Messy Part

Sometimes we do everything we think we're supposed to do—and things still don't turn out the way we expected.

Sports can be a perfect example. Someone can work hard, train, sacrifice, and believe they've earned an opportunity, only for the season to unfold completely differently. And when it's someone we love walking through that disappointment, we can feel it almost as deeply as they do.

It's easy to start asking:

Why, God? What was all that work for?

I've been reminded lately that disappointment doesn't necessarily mean something has gone wrong.

Sometimes it simply means the story isn't unfolding the way I wrote it.

What God Is Showing Me

Isaiah 43:19 says:

“See, I am doing a new thing!”

God doesn't promise that His new thing will immediately make sense to us.

But He does promise His presence.

Earlier in the chapter He says, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you.”

And in John 16, Jesus promises that the Holy Spirit will guide us into truth.

Maybe I don't need to understand exactly why something happened today.

Maybe my job is simply to ask:

“God, what are You doing here, and how do You want me to show up in it?”

Because He can use disappointment to build perseverance, humility, character, courage, and faith in ways that getting exactly what we wanted never could.

Hope for Today

The role might change.

The opportunity might look different.

The plan you were sure about might completely fall apart.

But God has not changed.

Don't become so focused on the opportunity you didn't get that you miss what God is putting in front of you now.

Keep showing up. Keep working. Keep trusting. Keep your heart soft.

Because the season you never would have chosen may be the very place God does something new.

Prayer

Father, help me trust You when life doesn't unfold the way I expected. When disappointment comes, protect my heart from bitterness and discouragement. Help me see beyond what didn't happen and notice what You are doing now. Give me the strength to keep showing up, the humility to trust Your plan, and the faith to believe that You can use even this for something good. Amen.

Hope 40:31Hope for the Heart. Strength for the Journey. Faith for Every Season. 🤍