Do we fail to understand God's plan most of the time? Why?

In my case it’s not most of the time, it’s all the time. Trying to figure out God’s plan is harder for me than trying to figure out the moves of a chess grandmaster, and I don’t play chess.

That’s not to say I don’t see what causes what, and in retrospect marvel at the ingenuity of some arrangements, but there’s no way I can predict what’s going to happen next.

One of Krishna’s areas of expertise is that He can achieve many things through one action. There are immediate consequences and long-term consequences. It’s way beyond our powers of calculation to foresee the knock-on effect of a particular action.

Even great devotees of the Lord don’t fully understand the Lord’s plan. Prabhupada went to America as part of the Lord’s plane. He once said:

"I thought, "I don't know why I have come here. The language is different, the idea is different. They are all after sense gratification. I don't know why I've come here.' But now I have got some boys, and even if I am not here, it will go on."

As servants of the Lord, we don’t need to know why. The Lord has His plan and even if we are not part of it we are still part of it. Alfred, Lord Tennyson got it right in his poem about the disastrous Charge of the Light Brigade.

Theirs not to reason why,

Theirs but to do and die.

As devotees of the Lord, we need not be concerned. The Lord is the benefactor and well-wisher of all living entities so His plan will always reflect that. Even if we cannot see any good in particular circumstances, knowing that the Lord is the Supreme Controller and wishes us well helps us tolerate the situation and continue with our service while awaiting further developments.

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