A few years ago, I was with a well-known actor who both writes and stars in major movies. We were at his house and walked into this room that had a large glass wall overlooking his property. Up on the wall, there were all of these 5 X 7 index cards, probably one-hundred-fifty of them. He explained that he was writing a movie, and those were all the different scenes. He studies them, moves them around, adds a scene here, and takes away a scene there. He said that to have a good movie, you need ups and downs, conflicts and victories, good characters and bad, twists and turns. While it was very fascinating, it was also very confusing. It looked so complicated. I said to him, "How do you even know where to start?" He said, "Oh, that's the easy part. You always start with your final scene. You have to decide how you want the movie to end. Once you establish the ending, then you work backwards and fill in all of the details." He said, "In fact, a lot of movies don't shoot in sequential order. Sometimes you shoot the final scene first, and then you shoot the rest of the movie."
This is what God has done for each one of us. The Scripture says, "God declares the end from the beginning." When God planned out your life, He started with your final scene. He started with where He wants you to end up. Jeremiah said, "God's plans for you are for good and not harm, to give you an expected end." Your end has already been established. Your final scene has already been shot. The good news – you don't end in defeat, failure or disappointment; you end in victory! You end as more than a conqueror! You end fulfilling your purpose!
When you understand your end has been established, you won't go through life discouraged because of a disappointment; bitter or frustrated because a dream hasn't come to pass. You'll stay in peace knowing that in the end, it's all going to work out to your advantage. But here's the key, like any good movie, there will be twists and turns. There will be scenes that don't make sense on their own. What you may not realize at the time is that it's not your final scene. You have an expected end. The Creator of the universe, our Most High God, has planned your days for good, not harm. If you'll keep moving forward, at some point, you'll come into a scene of victory. Trust God because He knows how to weave it all together. Your end has already been established, and you are destined for victory!