My week didn’t go as planned. It started with a blown tire Sunday night on our way home from some friend’s house. We let the car sit for the night and I went back to take care of it in the morning. It took two days to get the tire replaced because they had to order one.
As they replaced it, they noticed the boots on the steering joints were torn off and the cooling system wasn’t working. I thought I’d do the cheap thing and play it safe with the car so we wouldn’t have to get it changed right away (and be left without a car for another day).
But the next day, our car overheated and left us sitting again. So I took it back in and had them replace the boots and fix the cooling system.
That took a lot of time out of my week that I wasn’t expecting to spend on mechanical work.
The air conditioner in my classroom quit working last week. I made an appointment to get it serviced, but it was several days before they could come. We spent a week sitting in one hundred degree weather trying to focus on school.
Last evening, after getting home from school, I broke out in a fever that landed me in bed for thirteen hours.
I expected to get a lot more done this week than I have. We’re nearing the end of school and there are report cards and awards to be getting ready. But I didn’t have the time. I was busy choosing between Firestone and Michelin.
Life is full of uncertainties. Things not going as planned.
We like to know what’s coming. Our culture preaches taking control of our time and finances, and yes, that’s all good to remember, to be intentional about what we do with our time and money. But the reality is that when the day is said and done, we don’t have control of what happens.
The truth is, life is less about getting things done and more about who we are becoming along the way.
Do I respond in trust when I face uncertainties? Trust in God and the fact that He is in control? Can I worship in sincerity and truth when our tire blows and the coolant boils over? Worship a God who is worthy of my full devotion simply because He is my Creator and Father and only source of life?
It’s the time of year when graduates wear their gowns and receive their diplomas.
Every one of us that has gone through that season of life knows the questions that people ask:
“Do you have any plans for the next year?”
“Will you be going to college?”
“What’s next?”
I didn’t have the faintest clue what I’d be doing in two or three years after my graduation. I had an idea for the next year, but I didn’t know what came after that. Even as a plan developed, it changed and things happened that weren’t part of that plan.
I don’t know what season of life you’re in right now. I know it’s good to listen to where God might be calling you, and think through how you are spending time and whether it’s in-line with your calling. But as you do that, remember this:
Calling is discovered in a journey, not a temperament test.
If you don’t know the specifics of your future, or if you did have a plan, but things happened that disrupted it, that doesn’t mean you’re failing. It means God is directing your journey.
Trust Him. Worship Him. And He will lead you in the path of life even when life doesn’t go as you planned.
