How to plan for the future

One of the great challenges of the year 2020 that we have just completed was all the broken plans that so many of us experienced. For me, it meant cancelling a tour to Israel that was to be taking place this coming February, 2021. That was tough, as it was going to be my 22^nd trip there.

So, when we look forward into 2021 and beyond, we legitimately may wonder with all the uncertainty surrounding the Coronavirus Pandemic, how we should plan for it. That’s why the statement I recently came across is so appropriate: “So in retrospect, in 2015, not a single person got the answer right to ‘Where do you see yourself in five years from now?’”

The future, by the very way God created reality, is unknown to us, shrouded in a mist as it were.

The Bible says, “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.”

We don’t know if we’ll be around, let alone what we’ll be doing. Like the fellow who loved to golf and during the night, an angel appeared to him and said, “I can answer any question you want, so go ahead and ask.” The man thought for a moment, “Are there golf courses in heaven?” The angel replied, “Do you want the good news or the bad news first?” The man shrugged. “Give me the good news.” So the angel told him, “The courses in Heaven are so beautiful I can scarcely describe them. There is no cost to play on them, and you have your choice of golf clubs. Beverages and electric carts are provided free of charge. All the balls miraculously float on the water so you’ll never lose them, and all your shots go straight.” The golfer smiled and asked, “Wow, that’s amazing. What’s the bad news?” The angel replied, “You tee off in five minutes.”

That’s why the Bible says, “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth” (Proverbs 27:1).

When we do plan for the future, there are a couple of things we should take into account. First, we need to be careful to not presume upon the future. Any planning that does not take into account the uncertainties of life and its brevity is presumptuous. It’s not a presumption anyone should make; God makes no guarantees and you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. Many changes come that we have absolutely no control over: today you’re the picture of health, tomorrow you’re crippled with disease…

You don’t even know if you’ll live a year. A man was walking on the beach when the waves washed up a lamp. He rubbed it and out came a genie, offering him one wish. After thinking hard, he asked for a copy of the newspaper dated one year from today. The genie asked why he wanted that. He said, “So that I can see how the stocks I am trading in now are doing one year from now.” The genie granted it and poof the paper appeared. He quickly turned to the financial pages to see how his stock was doing. After he made his decision on stocks, he flipped back to the last page by accident and saw his own obituary with a photo of himself on it.

Secondly, we need to hold the future tentatively. That’s why the Bible says that when we talk about the future, we should always tell ourselves: ‘If it is the Lord’s will…’ When my mom was still living, she would always make statements involving the future with the prefix of, “Lord willing…”

So, go ahead and make your plans, but always with this caveat: “Lord willing, I will…” That’s the best way to both please God and save yourself from a pile of disappointment.   

Henry Ozirney was the founding pastor of New Life Church in Stonewall, where he served from 1970 until he retired in 2014. He is currently Interim Pastor at New Life Church in Teulon, Manitoba. He can be reached at [email protected] or 204-461-1105.