Clock it!
To be honest with you, the recalibration from being in Nigeria WITH the hubs to being back in the US WITHOUT hubs has been rough. NOT PRETTY WHATSOEVER.
But like I always say, I can brag about my weaknesses and my smelliest and ugliest days because those are the times God seems to come closer to me more than ever — ESPECIALLY THEN.
Like yesterday, debating whether to go to the office to write my blog or stay at home and write it in our home office was a conversation with God. God said, Nik, bloggy first, then office.
I wrote it and asked Meta to capture the Bible verses to capture the essence, and Meta wrote this:
Genesis 50:20 — THE PRISON TO PROMOTION VERSE
“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
I freaked out because right above where I typed was a very horrible handwritten page of exactly this verse FROM 6 YEARS AGO:
Genesis 50:20
“You meant to hurt me, but God turned your evil into good to save the lives of many people, which is being done.”
[God whisper: That’s Psalm 139, baby. Fully known (EVERY MOVE YOU MAKE I KNOW ALL ABOUT IT!), fully loved (smelly? I don’t care!). Even then.]
And if that’s not enough for you, this morning I debated for the longest time what YouTube prayer to listen to on my way to our God Tree, and out of all the prayers for me to select, look what it spoke about — Joseph who spoke those very words from Genesis 50:20.
NOBODY CAN TELL ME ALL OF THIS LINING UP SO PERFECTLY WAS NOT GOD!!! EVEN ON OUR UGLIEST AND SMELLIEST DAYS, OUR GOD LOVES US THE SAME!!!
Here is what the prayer FROM Prayer Hope Daily brilliantly explained — why Joseph and I can both brag about how God turns our evil into good:
Think of Joseph. Sold into slavery by his own brothers, carried off to Egypt in chains, falsely accused, forgotten in a prison cell for years. If Joseph had been given a pen and paper the night before his brothers threw him into that pit, do you think that is the plan he would have written? Of course not. He would have written a plan full of favor, full of honor, full of his father’s love and his brother’s respect. Instead, his plan was shattered into pieces that must have felt at the time like senseless cruelty.
And yet, years later, standing before the very brothers who betrayed him, Joseph said something that ought to be carved into the doorframe of every believer’s heart. YOU INTENDED TO HARM ME, BUT GOD INTENDED IT FOR GOOD (Wink! Wink!). Not God allowed it to turn out good, though that is true. Joseph said, “God intended it.” From the very beginning, before Joseph had even climbed out of that pit, before the coat was torn and dipped in blood, God’s plan was already moving beneath the wreckage of Joseph’s shattered plan.
The surrender did not mean Joseph enjoyed the pit or the prison or the years of exile from everything familiar. Surrender rarely feels good in the moment, but it meant that even in the pit, Joseph was not outside of God’s purpose. He was walking directly through the center of it, even though it looked from where he stood like abandonment.
That’s the hard truth about surrender, friend. And I want to be honest with you this morning rather than give you a shallow comfort that won’t hold up when Tuesday’s trouble comes. Surrendering your plans to God does not mean everything unfolds the way you hoped. It does not mean the job comes through or the diagnosis comes back clear or the relationship is restored on your timeline. Surrender is not a formula for getting what we want. It is something deeper and I would say something far better. It is the settled confidence that the one holding your life is wiser than you are, sees further than you can and loves you more than you love yourself. That is not a small thing. That is in fact everything.
Consider Jesus himself in the garden of Gethsemane the night before the cross. Here was the son of God fully aware of what the next day held. Betrayal, mockery, the whip, the nails, the weight of every sin ever committed pressed onto his shoulders. And what did he pray? Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. That is an honest prayer. That is a human prayer. Jesus did not pretend the coming suffering was something he desired. He asked sincerely if there was another way. But then he said the words that must become the anthem of every surrendered life. Yet not as I will, but as you will.
Friend, if the sinless son of God in the garden, wrestling with the most agonizing assignment ever given to a human life, still bent his will to the father’s. Who are we to insist that our will must prevail in far smaller matters? Who are we to demand that our plan for this Friday, this month, this year must be the plan that unfolds when even Jesus surrendered his own desire to a will greater than his own.
And here is what I want you to notice because it changes everything. Jesus did not surrender because he didn’t matter. He surrendered because he trusted the father’s wisdom more than he trusted his own preference in that moment. That is not weakness. That is the deepest strength a human heart can display. It takes far more courage to open your hands and release your plans to God than it does to clench your fists around them and insist that your way is best. Anyone can grip tightly. It takes faith to let go.
I think many of us resist surrender because we quietly believe somewhere in the back of our minds that God’s plan might be less than our plan. That surrender means settling. That it means a smaller life, a duller life, a life with the color drained out of it. But friend, nothing could be further from the truth. Jeremiah 29:11 tells us that God knows the plans he has for us. Plans to prosper us and not to harm us. Plans to give us hope and a future. Notice the order of that verse. God does not say, “Tell me your plans and I will bless them.” He says, “I know the plans I have for you.” His plans came first. Before you were formed in your mother’s womb, Psalm 139 tells us, He knew you. He saw your days written in his book before one of them came to be.
Your life was not an afterthought that God is now trying to steer back onto your intended course. Your life was authored by him from the beginning. Surrendering your plans to his wisdom is not settling for less. It is finally aligning yourself with the story that was always meant to be yours.
I have watched people spend years fighting for a plan that God was never going to bless, exhausting themselves trying to force a door open that he had deliberately closed, only to look back later, sometimes years later, and see with tearful clarity that his redirection was mercy, not punishment. The job that fell through that felt like devastation at the time turned out to be the very thing that spared them from a season that would have crushed them. The relationship that ended in heartbreak made room for the one that could actually bear the weight of covenant love. The plan that collapsed became the doorway to the plan that could actually hold their life.
We rarely see this in the moment. Surrender almost never makes sense in real time. It only makes sense in the rear view mirror when we finally see the road we could not see while we were walking it.
This is why Proverbs 3:5 and 6 have carried so many weary souls through so many uncertain mornings. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight. Notice friend, it does not say lean not on your understanding because your understanding is worthless. You are intelligent. You are capable. God gave you a mind to reason with. But your understanding, however sharp, is limited by what you can see. Today, this week, maybe this year, if you’re especially perceptive, God’s understanding is not limited at all. He sees the beginning from the end. He sees the friendships that haven’t formed yet, the doors that haven’t opened yet, the healing that hasn’t happened yet, the very way your character is being shaped through this present difficulty into something it could not become any other way.
When you lean on your own understanding alone, you are leaning on a candle to light a road that stretches beyond the horizon. When you surrender to his understanding, you are leaning on the sun itself.
So what does this surrender actually look like on an ordinary Friday in an ordinary life with ordinary responsibilities pressing in from every side? It does not mean throwing away your calendar or refusing to make decisions. It means holding your plans with open hands rather than closed fists. It means beginning each day as we are beginning this one by saying Lord here is what I have planned. Here is what I hope happens today. But I trust you more than I trust my plan. If you choose to redirect me, I will not fight you. If the meeting gets cancelled, if the answer I’m hoping for doesn’t come, if the day unfolds nothing like I imagined, I will trust that you are still establishing my steps. Even when I cannot trace the pattern, it means praying as James instructs us, not with the arrogance of certainty, but with the humility of dependence. If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that rather than boasting about tomorrow as though it belongs to us.
And friend, this surrender is not a one-time decision made in a single dramatic moment. It is a daily choosing, a morning by morning laying down. That is precisely why we gather here each day before the sun has fully claimed the sky. Because surrender is not natural to us. Our default is control. Our default is gripping. So each morning we must by an act of the will open our hands again and say, “Not my plan, Lord, but yours. Not my timeline, but yours. Not my understanding of what this day should hold, but your wisdom, which sees what I cannot.”
YOUR 5AM GIRL TAKEAWAY
See? Even on our ugliest and smelliest days, our God loves us the same — ESPECIALLY THEN.
Joseph in the pit — same love.
Jesus in the Garden — same love.
Nik in recalibration — same love.
Your life is not an afterthought. It was authored. Every day — the Nigeria days, the without-hubs days, the God Tree days — written in His book before one came to be.
So today we open our hands. Not my plan, Lord, but Yours.
WE ROLL WITH GOD…WE ROLL WITH MERCY, STRENGTH, COURAGE, FAVOR, WISDOM, LOVE, PEACE AND JOY
STEP 2: HOLD IT WITH OPEN HANDS (The Surrender Practice)
Okay Team Emmanuel, we clocked that God loves us the same even on our ugliest days — ESPECIALLY THEN.
Now what do we DO with that on a regular Tuesday when the plan falls apart?
Surrender is not a feeling, baby. It’s a practice. A daily choosing. Here’s how we practice open hands in real life:
1. The Morning Lay Down — Before your feet hit the floor.
This is why we do 5AM Prayer Club. Before you grab the phone, you open your hands — literally. Palms up.
Pray: “Lord, here is my plan for today. [Say it]. But YET — not my plan, but Yours. Not my timeline, but Yours. If You redirect me today, I won’t fight You.”
[God whisper: That 30-second prayer realigns your whole day. You’re not giving up — you’re giving it to the One who wrote it.]
2. The “If The Lord Wills” Edit
James 4:15 says we should say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.”
All day, when you catch yourself gripping — that meeting MUST happen, that text MUST come, that door MUST open — edit it.
Instead of: “I have to get this today.”
Say: “If the Lord wills, I will get this today. And if not, He has something wiser.”
That’s not passivity. That’s Psalm 139 trust. He sees what you can’t.
3. The Rear-View Mirror Journal
At night, 3 lines only:
– What didn’t go as I planned today?
– Where might God have been protecting / redirecting me?
– What did I learn about His love — same love, especially then?
You will start to see it. The job that fell through was mercy. The closed door was covering. Surrender only makes sense in the rear view.
Your Homework for tomorrow’s God Tree:
Hold ONE thing you are gripping tightly — that relationship, that business move, that return-to-Nigeria timeline — hold it in open hands for 60 seconds. Don’t pray for YOUR outcome. Pray: “Your wisdom over my preference. I trust You more than I trust my plan.”
Anyone can grip. It takes faith to let go.
We don’t roll with our plan. WE ROLL WITH GOD.
5 VERSES THAT CARRY THIS WORD (And Why We Need Them)
1. Genesis 50:20 — THE THESIS VERSE
“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
Why: This is your whole ugly-days-same-love message. Joseph didn’t say “God ALLOWED it” — he said “God INTENDED it.” Even your pit days were never outside His purpose. ESPECIALLY THEN, He was writing redemption underneath the wreckage.
2. Psalm 139:16 — THE AUTHORSHIP VERSE
“Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”
Why: Your life is not an afterthought God is trying to fix. The Nigeria days, the US-without-hubs days, the banned-from-office days, the God Tree days — all written BEFORE. That’s why His love doesn’t switch up. Same Author, same love.
3. Matthew 26:39 — THE GARDEN VERSE
“Yet not as I will, but as you will.”
Why: This keeps surrender honest. Jesus didn’t pretend the cup was easy — He said “if possible, let it pass.” You can be honest about the pain AND still surrender. That’s not weakness. That’s the deepest strength. Open hands > closed fists.
4. Proverbs 3:5-6 — THE SUN, NOT THE CANDLE VERSE
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”
Why: Your understanding is a candle — it only lights today, this week, maybe this year. His understanding is the SUN — it sees beginning from the end, friendships not yet formed, doors not yet opened, character being shaped. Surrender is swapping the candle for the sun.
5. Jeremiah 29:11 — THE HOPE + FUTURE VERSE
“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.”
Why: Notice the order! He says “I know the plans I HAVE for you” — not “tell Me yours and I’ll bless it.” His plans came first. Surrender isn’t settling for less, it’s aligning with the better story that was always yours.
5AM PRAYER CLUB CHALLENGE:
Write these 5 on a card. Pray one per day Monday-Friday before you open your hands.
And say it: “Even on my ugliest days — ESPECIALLY THEN — God still loves me the same!”
WE ROLL WITH GOD… WE ROLL WITH MERCY, STRENGTH, COURAGE, FAVOR, WISDOM, LOVE, PEACE AND JOY
OUR MIGHTY CLOSE OUT PRAYER — IN THE NAME OF EMMANUEL
Father, in the name of Emmanuel — God WITH us, not God watching us from far — we come this morning with open hands, not closed fists.
Lord, here is our plan. Here is what we hoped today would look like. But YET — not our will, but Yours be done.
Thank You that even on our ugliest, smelliest, not-pretty days — ESPECIALLY THEN — You still love us the same. Same love in the pit, same love in the palace. Same love in Nigeria, same love in the US. Same love when the door opens, same love when it closes.
We remember Joseph today. You intended it for good. So we declare over every shattered plan, every canceled meeting, every delayed answer — God, You are intending it for good beneath what we can see.
We remember Jesus in the Garden. He said, “If it is possible, let this cup pass,” so we bring our honest prayers too. Lord, this is hard. This recalibration is rough. But YET — not as we will, but as You will. We trust Your wisdom more than our preference.
Write Your plans over ours, Lord. You saw all our days before one came to be. You know the plans You have for us — plans to prosper us, not to harm us, plans to give us hope and a future. Straighten our paths as we acknowledge You. Let us lean on the Sun, not the candle.
Today we choose surrender again. Morning by morning, we lay it down. Not our plan, but Yours. Not our timeline, but Yours. Not our understanding, but Your wisdom.
We cover our homes, we cover our husbands, we cover our hearts. Let Your mercy, strength, courage, favor, wisdom, love, peace, and joy roll with us today.
In the mighty and matchless name of Jesus,
In the name of EMMANUEL — God with us even here, even now —
Amen and Amen.
WE ROLL WITH GOD… WE ROLL WITH MERCY, STRENGTH, COURAGE, FAVOR, WISDOM, LOVE, PEACE AND JOY!
CLOCK IT!