Be Settled

We humans keep brainstorming options and plans, but God’s purpose prevails. (Proverbs 19:21)

I find we don't always get the best from the most - we often get the best when we are able to filter it down to the least. Brainstorming is a technique we employ for solving problems, amassing information, stimulating creative thinking, or developing new ideas, by unrestrained and spontaneous participation in discussion. If you have ever been part of a "brainstorming" session in a large group, you know you can generate a whole bunch of ideas in a short period of time using this technique. 

We have all kinds of options and formulate all manner of plans. As we interact with God and others, we have this continual "brainstorming" session going on in our mind! We throw up ideas, often without much calculation, and see if any of them "sound okay" for us to be pursuing. The real danger comes in us "throwing up" so many ideas! Have you ever had too many options? What the brainstorming does is leave us in a mess - chaotic thought produces chaotic behavior. By the very definition of the word "brainstorm" we see two things - the center of thought and the chaos it brings! Our brain is the center of thought and as such it is the place of understanding. Add too much thought into the picture and you get the idea of a "storm" effect - you really don't know where the next thought will come from or what it will reveal!

Options and plans - doesn't this really reveal the idea of wanting to have all our options available before we start a thing? We are constantly working out the "if-then" scenarios in our minds. If this happens, then I will go this direction; if that happens, then this is the course I will pursue. The danger in all this is the possibility of not getting God's direction before we make the choices which will set things in motion in our lives. My brain shuts down after a while. When I get on "overload" because of too much "brain-storm" activity, I shut down! I don't drift into some catatonic state, but I do withdraw, find a place to center myself, and just spend some time getting things settled again. When too much chaos abounds, I just cannot function well. If my friends have observed me for a while, they see the more demands made of me, the quieter I become. Why? My brain is on "overload" and I just need to get focused again!

The brainstorming and planning is okay, but there is a bigger purpose behind every choice! God prevails! He is the "force" that settles the storm - he doesn't contribute to it! If you have ever been in the midst of a "brain-storm" of massive proportion, you might not recognize the source of the storm, but it is clearly NOT God. His actions are those of peace, order, and pre-eminence. There is but one purpose for our lives - to keep God first. The "storm" settles when we get this right. Take a few moments to "settle the storm" and to just focus on the one who makes everything a reality - Jesus! We can get so caught up in all the plans and preparations of life so as to miss the meaning of it all. Take some time today, center yourself again, allow the winds to die down in that brain of yours. This is our chance to connect with him - his presence will prevail - but we need to give him access! The best of our plans and the wisest of our schemes just pales in comparison to getting close to him! Just sayin!