Joy A. Mead

“With my husband’s job, we are quite flexible to move about. We plan on spending the next three years in this city and then relocating to that city for a minimum of five years. By the time our eldest child is nine or so, we’ll then plan to make our way back to our home country for secondary school. And by then, our careers will be two-thirds through, and next, we will strategically aim to retire within another ten to fifteen years. We’ll then do our final move to the countryside or coastline.” —An overly confident fictional character

I find it equally interesting and odd when people have such lofty life plans, like the example above, and as they confidently speak about such ideas to others, one would almost get the impression that for sure all of their plans will happen.

Yet, life isn’t like that at all! We can plan all we want and make certain goals our aim, however the Lord is the only one who really knows what any of our futures hold. Proverbs 16:9 says, “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.” 

Along our short walk from the church car park to the school gate, my daughter, son, and I enjoyed some delicate poppies back in the month of July. We quickly took photos of them, because we knew that they were to be enjoyed that day and without hesitation. Sure enough, just a few days later the petals had started to wilt already—a prime example of the saying, “Here today, gone tomorrow.”

Those poppies led me to thinking about life plans. Am I too busy with trying to make future plans, that I forget to enjoy this moment? Am I boastful or humble in speaking of what I’d like to do in the near and far future? Do I remember that my time really belongs to God?

James 4:13-15 says, “Now listen, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.’ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.’”

The description of life as a mist, here briefly and gone just as quickly, makes me realize that every moment must be filled with intention. And making plans loosely while saying, “Lord, willing,” is the way to be.

I think from time to time, we all make this mistake in thinking that we are in control of our lives—that if we just play our cards right, we can achieve much in this life through work, school, travel, relocation, etc. However, it doesn’t take much of a reminder to point us back to Jesus. A job redundancy, a school rejection letter, an illness, a broken friendship, or even having the ability to travel taken away during the pandemic, all serve as humble reminders that our goals and ambitions are not solely what we should be living for.

Though we are given much freedom to be proactive in planning and working toward our futures, let us not forget that God has even greater plans for our lives.

May we liaise with God, praying and committing our ideas to Him along the way.

And may our hearts be soft, pliable, and humble, as we continue to make each moment intentional in this short yet beautiful opportunity of life itself.