James 4:13-17

James 4:13-17
Contemporary English Version (CEV)

 This one gets me every time.  Rachel and I both are planners, worriers.  We wonder about tomorrow, about what might come.  We want to be prepared.  This is good in a way -- I think there is an element to faithfulness of preparing thoughtfully for the future.
  The danger is when preparing for the future becomes an idol, and we start to believe that we are entitled to that future.  When this happens, we forget that all of life is a gift from God.  When we start to count on the future, to expect it to always be there, we are forgetting that God is the author of life and that all of it depends on his gracious will.  We cannot guarantee tomorrow -- it can only be granted as a free gift, given generously and out of love.  Our plans may unfold... or they may not.  Life tomorrow, if God grants it, may look completely different than life today.  It will still be a gift.
  So let us not get so caught up in planning for tomorrow that we forget to take a moment and thank God for today.  Today is a gift, one we cannot earn and do not deserve.  May we fall before the throne of God and give thanks to the giver.