Herding Ducks

Proverbs 3:5 & 6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will direct your path.

I have never thought of having “ducks in a row” as a bad thing.  I admit it. I value a good plan.  It is good to have a plan, to know the purpose of the plan, and to know where, how and when the plan will be executed.

To do this, you need skills with ducks.  It sounds crazy, but when anyone says "my ducks are all in a row", I think of little yellow ducks lined up on the side of the bathtub. Just as the ducks are finished lining up plans go awry. Life keeps moving regardless of the plan. Catastrophe somehow over takes the ducks.  In the bathtub of life large waves, mounds of bubbles, and squirt guns take out them out. One by one ducks are snatched away, lost at sea, wander off, and drown in the dailiness of life.

Good News!  Never once in scripture does God tell us to go forth and herd ducks. Instead, He tells us that we should be sheep yielding to the care & direction of the Good Shepherd.  He doesn’t tell us to go forth and plan, he tells us to allow him to direct our paths.  What about the sheep? Sheep are stupid! Sheep may be known for being stupid, but what God values about the sheep is their ability to recognize and follow the shepherd.

John 10:27 “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”

I think God loves a good plan. But what he values is his plan. All through scripture his perfect plan is written out and woven through history for us to see. In regard to our plans,

Proverbs 19:21 tells us, “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails.” 

My plans must fall into alignment with His plan. I should be actively seeking his will for my life. When I am doing this, my plans will naturally fall into line with what He desires me to do.  This doesn’t mean that my ducks will cease to succumb to the catastrophes of life. It does mean that I will be able to see God’s purpose for me and know that His plan is perfect. It will help me to remember that he will accomplish the plans that he has set before me.