The Master Plan

One thing I know is that God has a plan. 

He has shown me in my life and in the lives of others. 

I usually don't understand this concept until I look back on events in my life in amazement at how everything fits into place, but it's hard to see that when things aren't going according to plan.

And right now things are definitely not going according to my plan.  

So today I needed the reminder that God does, in fact, have a plan. And one of the many ways that I know that is because of a story I told a million times as a missionary in upstate New York, it's the story of the Smith family whose son would become the first prophet of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

Joseph Sr. and his family of 10 were living on a farm in Sharon, Vermont when they experienced 2 years of crop failure. In 1816 the family decided that they would try one more time. That year there was a snow storm in June and frost occurred every month of the year, destroying all the family's livelihood. After these three difficult years, Joseph Sr. finally decided that they needed to move. 

He heard about the fertile, cheap land of Western New York and moved to the town of Palmyra in search of a better future. His family soon joined him and everyone worked together to save enough money and eventually purchased  100 acres of land just south of Palmyra. While there the family established a master plan - they would first build a log home and begin clearing land to farm. They would tap the maple trees for sugar production and each of the sons would purchase adjoining land and build homes of their own. 

But the Lord had a very different master plan for this family. 

This land would eventually become the cradle of the Restoration, located just three miles from the hill where gold plates lay deposited by ancient prophets, waiting to come forth as The Book of Mormon. 

Now think of this - I can just imagine that poor, young father in Vermont, praying for good crops so that he would be able to provide for his large family. I'm sure those were long days of stress and worry and fear. But because of those trials - those three years of crop failure - this family moved exactly where God needed them to be. God knew exactly where the gold plates were hidden. He knew the faith of one of the young boys, Joseph Jr. He knew that this family would have the strength and humility to restore His church to the earth. 
He knew. 

Now I'm hoping that I don't have to wait three years for answers to my prayers. But because of this story and so many experiences, I know that God has a plan for my life. He sees the big picture. He knows.