“For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you.” — Jeremiah 29:11-14a NIV

This letter was written to those who had been sent into exile in Babylon. These people longed to be back in their home of Jerusalem. This exile was hardly viewed as a blessing but as a punishment that they could not understand. But God, in His faithfulness, uses all situations for His good. The Israelites found hope in knowing God knew His plans for them, and that His plans are always good. We can also find immense hope in this. God also knows His plans for our lives and He promises us that His plans are full of hope.

When we run hard after God, we find ourselves wanting His will for our lives. His plans for us aren’t always the same as our plans for us, but we can find peace in knowing that the Creator of the universe has a plan for our lives that impacts His kingdom. It can be hard to peruse His plans for our lives. Sometimes, God calls us to do things that seem crazy. Maybe God is calling you to change your major, join a church plant, or go on a mission trip long term. But, maybe God is calling you to break up with your significant other, stop hanging out with certain people, or to give up something you love. God's plans aren’t always the easy plans, but they are the best plans for us. The world might not understand why we run after plans that seem impossible, but what the world doesn’t understand is our God makes the impossible possible.

But, like the Israelites, we can’t see Gods plans for us until we seek out God. How can we know someone’s plans if we don’t know them? If we want to know God and His grand plans, then we have to immerse ourselves in Him. We have to read His word. We have to pray. We have to meditate on His commandments. We can’t be found by God if we aren’t actively seeking Him out with all our hearts.

God promises His people that he has plans that give us hope. This hope is found in Jesus. God has a plan for all of us, and that is for us to know Jesus. When we know Him, we can endure the hardships and trials that come our way, because we know the plans for our lives take us to heaven. We know there will come a day when the pain of the world will pass and we will spend eternity with our Heavenly Father.

But, until that day comes, we must run hard after God and run the race He has set before us. We must run with endurance, because we know that God has amazing plans for our lives and His kingdom.