What to do next
There is the awful predicament that I am consistently plagued - questions about the future. What do I do next? How do I handle this impending situation? What is God's will? What is best? What is good and right? How will I know? What's the deal - oh frustration.
James 4 - 13 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." 14 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. 15 Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." 16 As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. 17 Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.
Isaiah 55:9 - As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Interpretation: We are incapable of determining God's thoughts through human reasoning; therefore, we are dependent on divine revelation.
These verses tell me that I can't plan for tomorrow and that I can't even imagine that I can come up with what my tomorrow should even look like. How depressing. What am I supposed to do? How do I deal with topics like:
- Retirement savings
- Emergency savings
- Decision to go back to school or not
- Moving or getting a new job
- Changing my longer-term commitments: girl, friends, family, organization, activities, leadership
When I read through the Bible I get even more confused. There are some really rich people in there and some really poor. There are people that gave up everything to follow a calling (but how can we be sure something is that "calling"?) and people that did great things in their positions (jobs). There are people who are well-learned and those with no education.
I guess I get frustrated at God's creativity. For, I'd love to just be able to figure things out easy on my own. I'd like be able to apply analysis and logic to situations in my life and figure out what to do. But it's not that simple, simply because God doesn't want us bloat with pride by using the abilities he has given us to avoid Him. So, it's cool in the end that I must go back to Him. I must not have pre-conceptions of where my future is going that I'm unwilling to release. I must constantly check-myself.
How do I check myself? Well, I generally ask myself these questions when coming on a decision. Of course, I'm not so objective or perfect that I always allow myself to admit the full truth, but it's definitely a start.
- Am I rationalizing/justifying my actions? (Are there excuses or self-assurance with sensical reasons?)
- Am I scared to do it and it is in alignment with God's truths (probably should take the risk)?
- Do I have peace that after (and usually before) that I've acted righteously and in complete and utter humble submission to God?
- Is this good and right?
Does this resonate?
