By
Shelby G. Floyd
When we are making our plans, we must be sure to make those plans by considering the will of God. It is folly to make plans and leave God out of consideration. Too many times we boast about what we plan to do, without ever thinking about the Almighty who created the universe, and is in control of many things that are going on in this world. King Solomon advised, “Boast not yourself of tomorrow; for you know not what a day may bring forth” (Proverbs 27:1). He also emphatically stated that if we will commit our works unto the Lord then our thoughts will be established by Him (Proverbs 16:3). God is omnipresent and we cannot flee away from his Spirit or from his Presence (Psalms 139:7). Those who have read the story of Jonah know that he tried to make his plans without considering God, and we remember how that turned out. So, when you make your plans, consider that God may have also something to say and do in that regard.
Down through the centuries, the Christians who lived in the Latin speaking world would conclude their plans in writing by the initials D. V., which in Latin translates “God willing.” This doesn’t mean that every time we say or write about something we plan to do that we must say or write “God willing!” But on the other hand, it is a good habit to occasionally say or write “God willing” when we are making our plans to do this and that!
Of course, the Bible is always our best example. And we have many examples where Paul and others quite often qualified what they planned to do in regards to the work of the kingdom, by indicating in their communications, “God willing!” Here are several examples that we should consider and imitate in regards to making our plans both personal and religious:
1. To the Corinthian church Paul said, “I trust to tarry a while with you, if the Lord permit” (1 Corinthians 16:7).
2. To the Ephesian church he wrote, “I will return again unto you, if God will” (Acts 18:21).
3. And the writer James wrote to the churches of his day, and taught that instead of bragging and boasting about what we’re going to do, “Instead you ought to say, if the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that” (James 4:15).
Let all of us who are children of God admit with James that leaving God out of our planning and boasting about what we plan to do is evil and should be avoided as far as humanly possible!
Copyright © 2019 Shelby G. Floyd, All Rights Reserved
Shelby G. Floyd
Heartland Church of Christ
1693 West Main Street
Greenwood, Indiana 46142
shelby@thefloyds.net