Interruptions or Blessings in Disguise?

Louise Duval

LPC, LAC, AADC

10/26/2026

I like structure in my life, and I like things to go according to plan. When they don’t, I tend to get anxious and upset. Back around September, when everyone was remembering 9-11, I read something about several people who were delayed that day (they missed their flight, decided to stay one more day than they had planned, were running late to work, etc.), and if things had gone according to their plan, they would have been at the Twin Towers or on one of the planes that hit the Twin Towers when the tragedy happened. What was a delay and possibly a frustration for them was God's hand protecting them. I had a similar situation a while back. I was running late getting my daughter to school; I forgot my coffee, ran back into the house to get it, and was worried about leaving late. I saw a car accident happen right where I would have been if I had left a few minutes earlier.

Other interruptions may be blessings. What about the friend who calls you when you are busy, but you take time to talk to them, and your voice and listening ear encourage them enough to give them the hope they need to make it through the day? Maybe your child wants you to play with them, and even though you have a million other things to do, your time with them reminds them they are loved and important. You could be sitting on a park bench reading your Bible, a person asks to join you and “interrupts your quiet time”, but that person sees your Bible and asks some questions and you are able to plant a seed that leads them to continue asking questions and eventually accept Jesus as their Savior.

I have been trying to think differently about the interruptions, delays, or derailed plans and see what God may be doing and how He can use that for His glory and our good. We are not on this Earth to build our kingdom and make ourselves look good; we are here to build God’s Kingdom and to glorify Him. If we get so busy with our own lives, we may miss how God is trying to use us or forget to thank Him for all the ways He protects us when we didn’t even know we needed protection. So next time your plan gets interrupted, instead of becoming anxious and upset, look for God in it. He may be altering your plan because He has a better one. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways declares the Lord. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Psalm 55:8-9).

How many blessings or opportunities did we miss by being too concerned about our plan?