Don't Worry But Do Plan
By Dennis Pollock
As we read the teachings of Jesus in the gospels, we find that He is very much pro-faith and anti-worry. In Matthew 6 Jesus tells us:
Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble (Matthew 6:31-34).
It is good to know that our Father in Heaven knows our needs and is quite happy to fulfill those needs as long as we put Him and His kingdom first in our lives. Jesus states that physical needs are what the Gentiles worry about and seek after, the people who do not know or recognize the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But it should not be so with us. We have an Almighty and very compassionate Father in Heaven. And through His Son Jesus, we are promised a lifetime of provision, protection, and grace.
Jesus seems especially concerned that we do not worry about our future. And the future is exactly what most people worry about. We can usually handle today. The problems we face today don’t seem all that daunting, but tomorrow, next month, or next year – that is another matter. We don’t know all we will face, and we often feel a sense of dread and foreboding for that very reason. We can see today’s problems clearly and we are prepared to deal with them the best we can, but the future, with its mysteries and unknowns, is somehow far scarier than our current problems.
“What If…”
“I may lose my job soon,” “My spouse may leave me,” “I may end up homeless,” “My car may break down and I won’t have the money to fix it,” or “I may have a heart attack.” We worry about a thousand different problems that may or may not happen sometime in the future. They haven’t happened yet. Today, there is no sign of them. But what about tomorrow or next year? They could happen!
But Jesus tells us to stop worrying about what may or may not happen in the future. What is going on today? What challenges are you facing today? What issues need our attention today? These are the things we should focus on and spend our time on – not on problems that have not yet happened and may never happen. What Jesus says about this is indisputable. There is no room for any alternative interpretation of His words. He is plainly and unquestionably telling us not to worry about future challenges that may come into our lives and encouraging us to concentrate on our present responsibilities and difficulties. And He is also encouraging us to know that God will provide for us all our days.
Although Jesus is surely saying we should not worry about the future, He is not at all saying that we should not plan for the future. You would be most foolish if you never planned for your future. If you walked through life blissfully ignorant of everything except your current situation, with a philosophy of “whatever is going to happen will happen,” and refusing to ever plan, strategize, or prepare for anything except what is happening right now, you would have a miserable life. You would fail at every endeavor.
We Must Plan
We have to plan. Successful people from any and every profession are people who plan and think about their future expectations and goals. In the Book of Proverbs we read:
Plans are established by counsel;
By wise counsel wage war (Proverbs 20:18).
In every new endeavor or challenge we experience, we need to plan, and one of the main aspects of planning is getting wise counsel. Invite knowledgeable people to provide input and give advice. “What about doing this?” “Do you think this course of action is the best one?” “Should I spend a lot of money and time going in this direction?" Another proverb states that “In a multitude of counselors there is safety” (Proverbs 24:6). When do you need counselors? You need counselors when you are making plans for the future. So this indicates that it is a good thing for us to consider the future (but not to worry about the future).
A nineteen-year-old young man who is eager to have a happy life and a good career, and to experience a wonderful marriage and family life, must do a little thinking about his future. He cannot simply wait at home, sitting on the couch and watching television, and suppose that someone will knock on his door and offer him his dream job, or that a beautiful young lady will suddenly show up at his house and suggest marriage. He will need to think about how to achieve his goals. He may need to go to college or a trade school. He may need to socialize with other young people until he can meet and date a young lady who will become a great wife for him. This will involve some planning and thought. Even when you pray, you cannot expect God to simply drop the answers to your prayers into your lap. God promised Israel the land of Canaan, but they must strategize, and then go out and fight for it. It would require more than merely having a prayer meeting which would magically force all of the previous inhabitants to flee out of the land.
Planning and Preparing for Video Production
Years ago, the Lord moved my heart to create regular YouTube videos, both for diabetes education and teaching the Bible. I had made simple videos related to my African missions before that, so it wasn’t that I knew nothing about such things. But I knew I would have to step up my game tremendously if I were going to get into video creation in a big way. I spent many hours learning about the use of cameras, microphones, and lighting. I watched dozens of YouTube videos about how to make YouTube videos. I watched many videos about how to edit audio and video. This did not happen in an instant. It required planning and spending many hours learning all that I needed to know. Over time I became fairly proficient in video creation, and I launched out. I did not worry about my future, but I did plan and prepare for my future. And in time the planning and preparation paid off, and I began to see thousands of people subscribing to my YouTube channels.
This being said, I did not wait until I knew everything before I started. At a certain point, I knew it was time for me to begin to post my videos, even though I was still a relative amateur. But I learned as I went and improved my skills. So, the other side of this coin is that it is possible to “over-plan” and wait way too long to begin the mission, ministry, career, or business God has assigned you. It’s good to plan and think and prepare, but at some point, you have to say, “Well, I may not know it all, I may not be a seasoned pro at this, but I have to begin. Lord, help me to begin and help me to improve as I go.”
When God moves on your heart to start anything: a ministry, a business, a new direction, or whatever… At some point, you will have to just jump in the water. First, you plan, you think things through, you pray, you listen for God’s voice, you weigh pros and cons, but finally, and there is no getting around this, you jump. You jump in faith, for sure, you jump with your eyes on Jesus, you jump with all the wisdom and skill you possess, but you must jump.
Moving Forward in Christ
And this is how we who are in Christ move forward in life. We do not worry about tomorrow, but we do plan for and pray about tomorrow. And when the time comes for us to launch, we move forward in faith. As we abide in Jesus and continually look to Him, we discover that He is right there, just ahead of us, leading the way, parting the seas, blasting obstacles out of our paths, and sending our enemies fleeing in terror. We will not fear, and we will not worry. We will not waste our time focusing on all the things that could go wrong. As we follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, we will rejoice in the knowledge that with Christ, things will go right.
God, Himself is a Planner. He foresaw man’s sinful choices long before they ever occurred. Knowing that if He didn’t act, all men and women would be lost, He planned a means of our escape. He determined that Jesus Christ would die for the sins of the whole world, thereby providing a means of forgiveness and salvation and rise from the dead three days later. Before we ever came along it was determined in God’s mind that Jesus would come into our world and pay the price for our sins. Jesus is called “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8).
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