Word@Work James43 - James 4:15-17
Published: Thu, 04/09/09
Word@Work from BeaconLight
PLANNING IN GOD'S WAY
James 4:15-17 Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins. (NIV)
Planning is not wrong, but assuming that your plans will always be right, is wrong! The world of trading, retail, stock markets and investments are obsessed with guessing the future, but the 2008 credit crisis proved they could not do it. The Queen of the United Kingdom was reported to have asked an economics professor, "It is awful, why did nobody see it coming?" The learned economist replied, "At every stage, somebody was relying on somebody else; and everybody thought they were doing the right thing". You see, because only God knows the future, no human being can be an adequate reference point for anybody else. We all need to submit to the Lord's wisdom (cf James 1:5-7).
It used to be common in Britain for churches to put the letters 'DV' in their announcements for future events. 'DV' stands for Deo Volente, which simply means 'God willing' or 'if God wills'. It is a way of saying that although we have made these plans, we submit them to being overruled by God. Proverbs 16:9 in the New Living Translation says, "We can make our plans but the Lord determines our steps". Wise people understand that: they are careful about planning but are watching to see how the Lord may rearrange the outcome.
As Christians, we know that we should behave like this, but we are too easily swept away by corporate enthusiasm, or the 'vision' of the entrepreneur. When we catch ourselves in boasting mode, it is time to remember that if we fail to do our business in a God-fearing way, we are sinning. However, putting our plans under God's scrutiny is not a bad thing at all; because He really does know best. And He understands the requirements for both disciplined service and the market place; as Micah 6:8 says, "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." If that humble relationship with the Lord governs your heart, then you can trust Him to help you each day at work, and entrust the future to Him too.
Prayer: Dear Lord. You are the only person who can be right all the time. You are holy and righteous in all your ways, and You know the future. Thank You for having plans to integrate Your people into your future; so help me to make my plans with Your wisdom. Yet may I hold them lightly, accepting Your right to divert my course, and that of those around me, so You may have the praise and glory. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
You can read the verses around this Bible passage from the Internet Bible: - in English, and many other languages
Planning is not wrong, but assuming that your plans will always be right, is wrong! The world of trading, retail, stock markets and investments are obsessed with guessing the future, but the 2008 credit crisis proved they could not do it. The Queen of the United Kingdom was reported to have asked an economics professor, "It is awful, why did nobody see it coming?" The learned economist replied, "At every stage, somebody was relying on somebody else; and everybody thought they were doing the right thing". You see, because only God knows the future, no human being can be an adequate reference point for anybody else. We all need to submit to the Lord's wisdom (cf James 1:5-7).
It used to be common in Britain for churches to put the letters 'DV' in their announcements for future events. 'DV' stands for Deo Volente, which simply means 'God willing' or 'if God wills'. It is a way of saying that although we have made these plans, we submit them to being overruled by God. Proverbs 16:9 in the New Living Translation says, "We can make our plans but the Lord determines our steps". Wise people understand that: they are careful about planning but are watching to see how the Lord may rearrange the outcome.
As Christians, we know that we should behave like this, but we are too easily swept away by corporate enthusiasm, or the 'vision' of the entrepreneur. When we catch ourselves in boasting mode, it is time to remember that if we fail to do our business in a God-fearing way, we are sinning. However, putting our plans under God's scrutiny is not a bad thing at all; because He really does know best. And He understands the requirements for both disciplined service and the market place; as Micah 6:8 says, "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." If that humble relationship with the Lord governs your heart, then you can trust Him to help you each day at work, and entrust the future to Him too.
Prayer: Dear Lord. You are the only person who can be right all the time. You are holy and righteous in all your ways, and You know the future. Thank You for having plans to integrate Your people into your future; so help me to make my plans with Your wisdom. Yet may I hold them lightly, accepting Your right to divert my course, and that of those around me, so You may have the praise and glory. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
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Tomorrow is Good Friday. It is the day to remember that our sin and God's love took Jesus to the cross to die for us. Please read Isaiah 53:1-12 tomorrow (it is and exact prediction of what was to happen, written about 700 years before Jesus died). On Saturday we remember that Jesus' body was sealed into the rock-tomb, and on Sunday we remember that He rose from the dead. Do read the Passion narrative in John's Gospel chapters 18-21.
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All the 'back copies' for this series, and the series in Mark and Ephesians can be found on www.beaconlight.co.uk/email
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