Scripture Text: James 4:14-17
Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.”
James 4:15
Planning our future as a normal person has been a usual action and a normal thinking nowadays. We plan what course to get, where to work after graduation and where to retire once we're old enough. Little did Christians know that this course of thinking and these actions are prone to self-reliance that might result to a self-sufficient thinking which takes out God off the picture—also considered as boastfulness in front of God knowing that we know nothing about and worse, Christians are planning without God as part of that plan.
James specifically called the attention of those people who are really fond of planning their future specifically when it comes to profiting for longer period of time. He reminded those people that we do not know what will happen to our lives—one day you're alive and then on the next day life is taken from you and these people have the wrong motivation to execute their plan—to make profit.
Then, James gave us a pattern on how we, as a believers-followers of Christ, should view future planning and that is acknowledging the fact that things will only come to pass if the Lord wills it, not some arrogant person who believes too much of himself and plans things as if he is the owner of his own life. Christians are failing to recognize the uncertainties of life which will cause them to trust in God and to His sovereign will.
Self-sufficiency is a modern day struggle of this generation. People are deceived in believing and trusting themselves not knowing that we are fragile beings and anything can happen in a blink of an eye that will turn our world upside down—this is something that we cannot plan against especially if we are talking about life-threatening matters.
None of us know what the future holds. We can only plan and plan endlessly, but the Lord, who is the master planner, will make things happen even without our approval. We can only trust God that His will for us is good and will always prevail above any power here in the world.
Reflect
1. Do we trust God's masterplan for us and wholeheartedly believe and abide in it or do we plan things on our own since we are ambitious and wanted things on our own way at our own terms?
2. Do we acknowledge that whatever our plans are, if God does not permit it, none of it will happen?
Remember
We can only trust one being when we talk about our future, and that is God.
Read
Colossians 1:16; Psalm 115:3; Ephesians 1:4-6; Proverbs 19:21
Pray
Father, our master planner, we trust in Your sovereign will and power to the things that are coming to us. Teach our hearts not to be arrogant and selfish in seeing the future, but seeing You first as someone who holds our future in Your hands. Thank You, for we can fully trust in Your holy and perfect plan for us. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
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