Can You Ever Change God's Mind?

I don't know about you but I find this to be an interesting question.  Think about it, if God knows all and has the perfect plan for our lives then why would  He ever change His mind if we ask?  Doesn't that mean that His perfect plan wasn't so perfect after all?

Here is the passage from 2nd Kings that sparked this thought.

2 Kings 20:1-6(NKJV)

1In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die, and not live.’”

2Then he turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to the Lord, saying, 

3“Remember now, O Lord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what was good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

4And it happened, before Isaiah had gone out into the middle court, that the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 

5“Return and tell Hezekiah the leader of My people, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord. 

6And I will add to your days fifteen years. I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for My own sake, and for the sake of My servant David.”’”

Well as you can see, it appears that you can get God to change His mind.  God had sent Isaiah to tell King Hezekiah that his life had come to an end.  Hezekiah prayed and begged and God changed His mind and let Hezekiah live an extra 15 years.

So doesn't that call into question God's omniscient and perfect plan?  In my opinion not at all.  God knows what the ultimate outcome will be but that doesn't mean that there isn't room for a wondering path on the way to that outcome.

 

As anyone who has ever been an employee knows, nobody likes to be micro managed.  Tell me what you want done and I'll make it happen.  And as far as the employer is concerned, as long as the final outcome is accomplished in the time frame established, he doesn't really care how it is accomplished, within reason.  Does that make sense?

Because of God's allowance of free will I imagine there is a certain amount of latitude in His plan for our lives in much the same way that an employer makes allowances for how the goal is accomplished as long as it is accomplished.

Think of it another way.  God the Father.  Did your parents ever tell you no?  Mine did.  Sometimes I was able to convince them to change a no to a yes and sometimes I wasn't but it didn't hurt to ask.  The thing you had to be careful of was going from respectfully asking to badgering.

Again I think it is the same with God.  He doesn't mind us asking Him to change His mind as long as we are respectful of the answer He gives us, whether He grants our request or not. 

So yes we can change God's mind on occasion but only if that change still fits within God's plan.