Planning and Trusting

January 2, 2011

Not all of us believe in resolutions nowadays.

For some, recurring failures had drained all our hopes of ever keeping them. So why try?

There are also people who propagate that there is no need to plan since God is in control. “Whatever will happen will happen according to God’s will,” so they say. Such faith! Yet these same people will plan for their job security, promotions, wedding, family, insurance, finances and even vacations!

Then there are those who believe so much in planning that they run their lives as if everything depends on them. God is pretty much a spectator in their race against time to accomplish all that they want.

As disciples, what is our approach to goal-setting and life-planning?

As disciples, we are to live a life of balance; learning to hold the tensions of God’s promises and our responsibilities.

We are to plan and not live our lives haphazardly, without planning.

“Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.” (Ephesians 5:15-17)

Yet we put not our trust in our intelligence nor boast in our plans for we know that we are but “a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” Instead we say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” (James 4:15, 16a)

So let us plan responsibly and humbly submit our hopes to God and allow Him to unfold His purpose in us.