Plans Change, Love Remains

When special occasions roll around, it’s so much fun to make plans and then have the joy of anticipating that event! But what do we do when/if those carefully laid plans have to be changed or even cancelled? It’s so easy for me to feel frustrated and aggravated when that happens, and then take it out on the very ones with whom I should be celebrating! ~Sigh~

Ministry life can be very uncertain because no one plans a severe illness that takes them to the ER! No one decides when to die! These are all events held securely in the hands of a sovereign God. Many trips, vacations, outings and plans have been changed, cancelled or rescheduled in our lives due to those kind of life-altering events in the lives of our precious church family. Many times no one ever even knows that we had plans for something – they only knew that their pastor was there and they were grateful. You know what? The Lord gives us joy in serving, and He is so gracious to always give us another time or way to celebrate the event for which we had planned.

This past Tuesday we celebrated our 42nd anniversary, spending most of the day with a grieving family at the funeral home, the cemetery, and funeral dinner at our church. At the first realization, I had to run to the Lord to ask him to help me love my husband while he served so faithfully, and not to take my frustration out on him, because for a bit, I could feel it creeping into my heart. “No, Lord! This is not right. Give me grace to serve and to be thankful we have the blessing of serving this family together.”

After the family was served their meal, my husband and I were able to slip away to a favorite restaurant in the area and have a lovely meal together. We reminisced. We laughed. We exchanged cards and favorite memories. Though we didn’t get to take the trip to the B&B as we had planned, it has been rescheduled for a few weeks away. Now we have more time to anticipate that trip…Lord willing.

That funeral did change our plans, but it didn’t cancel our love for each other, or the opportunity to make another memory as a couple. We did something different, and it was fun! We even threw in the rare indulgence of an Orange Shake from our favorite fast food burger place, Pal’s on our way home.

I Corinthians 13 tells us that love endures all things. That would include changed plans. We can smile, a twinkle in our eye, because we’ve been here before, and we know that God never makes a mistake. Also, because His love endures, so can ours…even in the midst of whatever changes come in our marriage.

When plans change or you have disappointments in your marriage, remember that we must reflect the Gospel. Our position in Christ is eternal, it’s constant, it’s kind, loving, and grace-filled. Nothing can cancel our love when it’s rooted in Christ’s love for us!

Refresh your love for your spouse, even when plans change!