God's Plan or My Plan?

As a child, I was always fascinated by politics. In fact, my dream was to one day become the President of the United States. I clung to this dream so tightly that in 4th and 5th grade, my teachers would end the school year by giving me their presidential decorations and books. In 5th grade, I’d even ask my teacher if I could write essays about different presidents after finishing my daily work. I’d rush through my assignments, not caring about the quality, just so I could write those essays—and often recite them in front of the class. My dream mattered so much that I put more effort into those extra projects than my required schoolwork. Honestly, I only worked hard on my assignments to get them out of the way as fast as possible. All these years later, I still hold onto my dream of being a politician, though it’s evolved in many ways over time.

I grew up in a small town called Elyria, about 35 minutes outside Cleveland, Ohio. I loved my state and my city, and even now, I haven’t forgotten my roots. Though I live across the country these days, you can still hear the local Cleveland station playing in my office during the summer as I catch every Cleveland Guardians game I can. In the fall and winter, you’ll find me mourning yet another heartbreaking Browns season. As a kid, if you’d told me that at 24, the Lord would uproot me and move me to a city I’d never heard of, surrounded by people I’d never met, I’d have said you were nuts. My heart still aches for the day I return home, but deep down, I know there’s a reason I’m here.

Sometimes, life doesn’t follow the script we write for ourselves. When that happens, what do we do? Does God really expect us to abandon our dreams to follow His will? Is His plan always what’s best for us? Can I chase my dreams and still stay true to Him? These are big questions, and I want to share my thoughts on all three:

1. Sometimes God asks us to let go of our dreams for something bigger. 

   In Matthew 16:24-26, Jesus tells His disciples to “take up your cross and follow Him.” He even says, “Whoever saves his life will lose it, but whoever loses it for My sake will find it.” That’s heavy. It means sometimes we have to set aside what we want for what He wants. I think about my childhood dream of being president—maybe it’s not the point. What if God’s calling me to something else entirely? Look at Martin Luther King Jr. He wanted to be a pastor, not a global icon, but by following God’s call, he shaped the Civil Rights Movement. Or Jimmy Carter—he could’ve stayed on his peanut farm, but instead, he became a president and a humanitarian. Even in my own life, I ran for mayor in Elyria once. It didn’t work out, and I was crushed. But what if that loss was God nudging me toward a different path? Letting go is hard, but it might lead to something I can’t even imagine yet.

2. God’s will doesn’t always look ‘best’ in the moment, but it’s about eternity. 

   Romans 8:28 says God works all things for good, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Take the disciples—only one, John, lived to old age. The rest? Peter was crucified upside down, James beheaded, Thomas impaled, Bartholomew flayed alive. Paul faced shipwrecks, jail, and eventually Nero’s sword. If I’m honest, that doesn’t sound like a great deal. I’ve had my own struggles—moving across the country felt like losing everything familiar. But Matthew 6:19-21 shifts the perspective: “Don’t store up treasures on earth, but in heaven.” My Sunday school teacher used to hold up a shoelace and point to the tiny plastic tip—the aglet. “That’s your life on earth,” she’d say. “The rest is eternity.” When I think of it that way, the sacrifices make sense. Back in Ohio, I’d get so caught up in my political goals that I’d miss the bigger picture. Now, I see that God’s “best” might not mean comfort here—it might mean impact that lasts forever.

3. I can still chase dreams if they line up with God’s heart. 

   Scripture like Matthew 16 makes it clear God wants all of me, but I don’t think that rules out my dreams entirely. In Ohio, I ran for mayor and dreamed of state government. Neither happened, and soon after, God moved me to Texas. At first, I thought that meant my political dreams were dead. But living in Seagraves and working in Hobbs, New Mexico, I’m starting to see it differently. What if God brought me here to be a leader in a new way? Maybe there’s someone in this town who needs me to step up—whether through politics, community work, or something else. Philippians 4:6-7 says to pray about everything, and God will guide me. I’ve been praying a lot lately. Maybe He doesn’t want me in politics at all—maybe He’s pointing me toward organizing people or serving through the church. Or maybe He’s reshaping my dream to fit this place. I don’t have all the answers yet, but I trust that if I keep talking to Him, He’ll show me how my passions and His plans can work together.

   Conclusion

The answer to this question, along with many others from the Bible, isn’t black and white. The Bible makes it clear that the Lord wants us to follow Him, not ourselves. Our goal should be to store up treasures in heaven, not on earth. This doesn’t always mean the Lord is telling us to abandon our dreams. Maybe He’s trying to lead us somewhere to expand those dreams and make our impact greater. Look at MLK: he dreamed of being a pastor, but did he know he’d become a cultural icon, given the stage to fight for the rights of his brothers and sisters? Probably not. It only took answering one call from God to help him revolutionize the world.