Thought for w/ending 27 June

 James 4:13-17

¹³ Look here, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year.

We will do business there and make a profit.” ¹⁴ How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. ¹⁵ What you ought to say is, “If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.” ¹⁶ Otherwise you are boasting about your own pretentious plans, and all such boasting is evil.

¹⁷ Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.

In most weeks, I have to phone Bill Hastings, our Locum, or he has to phone me.  He always finishes the call by saying: ‘I’ll see you on Sunday (then there’s a brief pause), God willing’.  I like hearing this because it reminds me that every little thing we take time to plan in this life should be followed by this small but important caveat or qualification.  Everything we plan, everything we hope for, everything we pray for will only happen if it is the will of God that it should happen.

When I put ‘planning’ into a search engine on my laptop, it gave me information on Project planning, Retirement planning, Financial planning, Strategic planning, how to apply for Planning permission etc. etc.  There was loads of stuff on the subject of planning, but none appeared to have the small, but essential qualification previously mentioned.

I’ve mentioned in other articles the wee saying I used to hear at work which was ‘failure to plan is planning to fail’ then I came across another which said ‘if you want to give God a laugh, tell him your plans’.  Our reading says ‘how do you know what your life will be like tomorrow?’ and we just don’t know what’s round the next corner and what God has in store for us whether it is a disappointment or a blessing, whether it is bad news or good news.  I used to think that any of us that reach the milestone of ‘three score years and ten’ can be reasonably satisfied with what we have been given.  We’ll all know some who were never so blessed and others who have been blessed by more years than that, some, significantly more.  In reality, this number, whatever it is, has been given by God and none of us will ever know that number.

James tells us that our lives whether they be long or short in earthly terms are only like the morning mist in heavenly terms which only briefly appears then it disappears.

Is it not likely that if mankind spent the same amount of time in prayer or worship that is currently spent on all types of planning, the world would be a much better place in which to live?

The final verse demands our attention and obedience.  We are all placed in positions when we have decisions to make, and in most situations, we well know what option would be acceptable in the sight of God and the alternatives that would most probably or most certainly not be, and it is our duty to take the right option that will cause no offence to the one who gave up his life for us.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, it is so easy to get caught up in the joys and cares of this life. Help us remember how fragile our lives are and how short our time on earth is, in relation to eternity.  Help us live our lives with an eternal perspective, knowing that you have our lives in your hands, and only you know what tomorrow will bring.  Lord, imprint on our hearts that when we choose not to do that which we know to be right, we are sinning in your eyes.  Give us the character to choose wisely on those occasions which we know will be frequent, in Jesus name,  Amen (with thanks to knowing-jesus.com)