23 Bible Verses About Planning (The Right Way)

‘Then Job answered the Lord and said: “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.”’ (Job 42:2, ESV).

What a conclusion from Job! What do we take away from this verse?… As we will be looking into the Bible verses about planning, let’s learn from Job, who said this after God asked him many questions such as, ‘“Do you know when the mountain goats give birth? Do you observe the calving of the does? Can you number the months that they fulfill, and do you know the time when they give birth”’ (Job 39: 1-2, ESV).

And;

‘“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it?”’

(Job 38:4-5, ESV).

The fact of the matter is, God is Sovereign, He is the ruler of all the earth and He determines the end from the beginning;

‘“declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose’

Isaiah 46:10 (ESV)’

God knows all things, He is Omniscient. Therefore, as we are thinking of making some plans for this year, let’s not forget that God is in charge. Let us now look at the lessons we can draw from 23 Bible verses about planning, which have been listed below for ease of navigation through this article.

Bible Verses about Planning and Lessons To Learn
Conclusion: Bonus Bible Verse about Planning
- Where To Go from Here
References

Bible Verses about Planning and Lessons To Learn

23 Bible verses about planning — SAVE ON PINTEREST

Commit your Plans to God

Verse 1: ‘Commit your works to the Lord, And your plans will be established.’ (Proverbs 16:3, NASB2020).
Verse 2: ‘In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight.’ (Proverbs 3:6, NASB1995).

Lesson: As we have seen that God is all-knowing, we should commit all our plans to Him who made us for His glory, for He knows the future and what’s best for us. If we make plans on our own, we will be setting ourselves up on the wrong path.

The Lord Orders Our Steps

23 Bible verses about planning the right way — Photo by Dmitry Schemelev on Unsplash

Verse 3: ‘The mind of a person plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps.’ (Proverbs 16:9, NASB2020).

Verse 4: ‘The lot is cast into the lap, But its every decision is from the Lord.’ (Proverbs 16:33, NASB2020).

Verse 5: ‘A just balance and scales belong to the Lord; All the weights of the bag are His concern.’ (Proverbs 16:11, NASB2020).

Verse 6: ‘Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain.’ (Psalm 127:1 NASB 1995).

Verse 7: ‘There are many plans in a man’s heart, Nevertheless the Lord’s counsel—that will stand.’ (Proverbs 19:21, NKJV).

Lesson 8: ‘The plans of the heart belong to a person, But the answer of the tongue is from the Lord.’ (Proverbs 16:1, NASB2020).

Verse 9: ‘“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.’ (Isaiah 55:8, NKJV).

Verse 10: ‘“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.’ (Isaiah 55: 9, NKJV).

Verse 11: ‘Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil.’ (James 4:13-16, NASB1995).

Lesson: We can plan but it is the Lord who will order our steps. His ways are not our ways. Therefore, there is no better option but to let Him lead us so that we live for Him alone, according to His divine purpose for our lives. As the last verse puts it, we need to always say ‘God willing’ because we don’t know what will happen tomorrow.

Now you may ask, ‘so why should we plan in the first place if God already knows the end?’ Let’s look at the verses below in regard to this matter.

It is Important to Plan Ahead

Verse 12: ‘For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it— lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish’? Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?’ (Luke 14: 28-31, NKJV).
Verse 13: ‘The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it.’ (Proverbs 22:3, ESV).
Verse 14: ‘Sluggards do not plow in season; so at harvest time they look but find nothing.’ (Proverbs 20:4, NIV).
Verse 15: ‘Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.’ (Proverbs 6:6-8, NIV)
Verse 16: ‘The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty.’ (Proverbs 21:5, ESV)

Bible verses about planning ahead — Photo by Estée Janssens on Unsplash

Lesson: Planning ahead helps us to prepare for and avoid any difficult situations, or simply to help us be on track with the tasks we have. If we plan, we are being careful and wise. This wisdom can only come from God alone, hence the reason why we need to commit our plans into His hands in the first place.

Proverbs 22:3 (ESV) above gives us the distinction between a prudent and a simple person. The wise person is thoughtful about his/her next step while the unwise just goes ahead without giving careful consideration. The result is he/she suffers from the wrong decision made.

‘If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.’

(James 1:5, NIV)

Weekly Planner Template

In this lesson about planning ahead, if you are in need of a weekly planner, please click below to download the free printable weekly planner template, which has a section for a to-do list, memory verse of the week and also for writing some notes.

Download Weekly Planner

If you are looking for a planner in book format, I would recommend the below planner diary from Amazon. This planner comes with a shopping list, stickers, address book, weekly & monthly planner, to-do list, notes section and meal ideas section. You can use it to write in your sermon and Bible reading notes too.

Now moving on to the next lesson.

Plan with Good Motives

Verse 17: ‘All the ways of a person are clean in his own sight, But the Lord examines the motives.’ Proverbs 16:2 NASB2020).
Verse 18: ‘For the fool speaks folly, and his heart is busy with iniquity, to practice ungodliness, to utter error concerning the Lord, to leave the craving of the hungry unsatisfied, and to deprive the thirsty of drink. As for the scoundrel—his devices are evil; he plans wicked schemes to ruin the poor with lying words, even when the plea of the needy is right. But he who is noble plans noble things, and on noble things he stands.’ (Isaiah 32:6-8, ESV).
Verse 19: ‘Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.’ (Philippians 4:8, NASB1995)

Lesson: What are your motives behind your plans? Are they godly motives? Are they for good intentions? When making plans, ensure that they are right, honorable, true, pure, lovely and commendable. God searches our hearts, therefore whatever our intentions are, they should be right before God.

Seek Advice (From Trusted Sources)

Bible verses about planning and seeking advice — Photo by Christina @ wocintechchat.com on Unsplash

Verse 20: ‘Without counsel, plans go awry, But in the multitude of counselors they are established.’ (Proverbs 15:22, NKJV)

Lesson: When you are having trouble with making any plans, for example, planning to buy a house or build one, planning a wedding, planning on the right career path, planning the right trip, planning on the best medical care for a loved one, e.t.c., it is best to always seek advice from trusted individuals or even organisations.

God did not place us alone on this earth. He has given us people around us to talk to, who are blessed with information that we may not have. The Bible says ‘As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.’ (Proverbs 27:17, NIV). Therefore, find trusted people that you can go to for assistance if you are stuck in something.

God has Good and Better Plans for Us

Verse 21: ‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.’ (Jeremiah 29:11, NKJV).
Verse 22: ‘And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.’ (Romans 8:28, NASB1995)

Lesson: We serve a God who loves us and takes care of us. We should not worry about tomorrow. God’s plans are good for us. Always keep in mind that God has better plans for you. Give your plans to God and let Him handle them.

Conclusion: Bonus Bible Verse about Planning

Verse 23: ‘For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven’. (Ecclesiastes 3:1, ESV).

Lesson: In whatever we plan to do, we should always remember that there is a time and season for the plans according to God’s divine purposes. May the lessons that we have learned from the 23 Bible verses about planning, guide us as we are making plans for tomorrow, next week, next month or for the rest of the year if God wills. Above all, let’s commit ourselves to our Lord Jesus Christ. May He lead us in all things. Have a blessed day.

Where To Go from Here

Feel free to comment below and let us know what other Bible verses about planning you are aware of, that can encourage others to plan the right way.
Has this blog post been of great benefit to you? If yes, please do share this article with others by clicking on the social share buttons below.
Remember to download the free weekly planner template if interested. Tip: You can print it out and stick it on your fridge so that it can become a family weekly planner. Or simply print it out and use it as a personal weekly planner when you start planning your week. Let us know in the comments below how you are getting on with planning your week by following the lessons learned above.
If you are interested in other printable planners like monthly or yearly planners, please do leave a comment below. God bless.

References

Comments

Symone Brown says

February 3, 2023 at 11:53 pm

What an amazing article! Thank you very much for sharing these wonderful Scriptures. I’m inspired to review what goals I have and take them to God in prayer to begin working on them.

- goodwordinseason says
  
  February 4, 2023 at 1:41 am
  
  Thanks Symone! Am glad you’ve found it beneficial and inspiring 😊 Have a blessed year ahead!