"13-15And now I have a word for you who brashly announce, "Today—at the latest, tomorrow—we're off to such and such a city for the year. We're going to start a business and make a lot of money." You don't know the first thing about tomorrow. You're nothing but a wisp of fog, catching a brief bit of sun before disappearing. Instead, make it a habit to say, "If the Master wills it and we're still alive, we'll do this or that."
16-17As it is, you are full of your grandiose selves. All such vaunting self-importance is evil. In fact, if you know the right thing to do and don't do it, that, for you, is evil." (The Message)
It seems like I am well acquainted these days with plans that don't flow in just the way I had anticipated. Actually the more I learn that I don't control tomorrow the easier life is getting. (or at least I would like to think it does) Much of the stress and worries of life come from the anticipation and fear of what might be around the corner tomorrow. We can become consumed by the possibilities and we find ourselves praying for patience. The problem with praying for patience is two fold. First, God seems to have a sense of humor and gives us a lot of time to practice the patience. Second, the patience we usually want to have is to be able to wait until God makes things work out the way WE want them to.
Patience is something we can force ourselves to live with when we know we are going to get chocolate chip cookies at the end of the waiting. But what happens when at the end of our waiting we get steamed okra or cold fish or even Chicken Kiev? I am beginning to believe that in praying for patience I've been praying the wrong prayer for much of my life. I am now beginning to see that I should have been praying for a deeper level of trust in God. Because trust is different than patience. Patience says to me that I will get what I deserve/want/need in the long run. Trust allows me to believe that what I receive from God today and tomorrow will be enough.
So today I will do everything that I can to honor God and love my neighbor because that is all that I have and just maybe it is enough.
Some thoughts to ponder and share with others:
- When you were a child what was waiting for Christmas like?
- Remember a time when events didn't turn out the way you had planned. What was your immediate reaction? How do you look at those events now? How might your life have been different today if things had turned out the way you thought they should?
- What plans do you have that you would be better off giving to God to work out the details instead of you worrying about them?
- What can you do today that is the right thing to do that you have been putting off lately?
No comments:
Post a Comment