Monday October 25, 2010

"Journey Through James - Part 8"

James 4:13-17

Boasting About Tomorrow

 ¹³Now 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." ¹⁴Why, 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. ¹⁵Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." ¹⁶As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. ¹⁷Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.

This is such a powerful passage in just a few short verses. I know all of us make plans to do things, not even thinking much about it. Some of us even make plans way in advance so that we feel better prepared for the future. Making plans is not bad, but making plans expecting that they will go exactly as you want them to is foolish. As it says here, instead we should say "if it is the Lord's will." That puts God in total control of our lives. It's a hard thing to relinquish control to a God we can't see, but that is what we must do. The bible promises that God will be with us no matter what, so we have to trust that His plan is the best plan for our lives.
A lot of people spend time praying and thinking things like, "God, what is your will for my life? What do you want me to do with my life?" What we should be praying instead is, "God what is your plan for me in the next 10 minutes!" We don't even know if we will live to see tomorrow, so trying to figure out God's plan for your entire life is a little bit of a waste! Ask God what he wants you to do TODAY...RIGHT NOW.
The last verse here (v.17) is one that I talk about a lot. How many times have you been faced with a situation where you knew what the right thing to do was, and you didn't do it. Let's say your friends invite you to a party, and you know there will be drinking and/or smoking going on there. You know you shouldn't go but you do anyway. According to God, that is sinning. The way we know "the good" we ought to do is by reading the bible and praying. Stay close to God and you can't go wrong.

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for being in total control of our lives. Help us to trust you fully with the plans you have for us. Help us to live for right now, and to do your will according to your word. Lord you are so mighty and powerful, but so loving and gentle. Thank you for everything you do for us. Thank you for guiding us through each minute of our lives. Help us to lean on you and to do the good we ought to do each day. We praise you and we love you, amen.

Lots of love,
Aubrey <><