Make a New List

I don’t know about you, but I’m a list maker. I make a list for grocery shopping, for upcoming events, for my budget, and all sorts of “to do” lists. I make lists for where I want to be in the future, be it debt free, slimmer, educated, or living somewhere else. Lists for the things I want to accomplish in life. 

I seldom reach all the long-term life goals I set out on my lists.  

I was watching the TV show Brothers and Sisters the other day. It’s about a family that exemplifies how our best laid plans can be undone in a moment and send us off in a completely new direction. Justin, the youngest son in the family is an addict and war vet who has fought his way to sobriety and service in his community. As his 30^th birthday approaches he shares his list of things he wanted to accomplish by the time he turned 30. A list he didn’t come close to completing because of his struggles. He feels that he is a failure for letting his behaviors get in the way of accomplishing his goals. His older brother takes the list and tells him to:

“Make a new list!”

I think all of us have those moments in life where things hit us out of the blue:

The end of a relationship that we planned to last a life time.

The unexpected death of someone close to us.

The degree we never completed.

The child who had physical or mental challenges.

The job that ended before we could retire.

The budget that went out the window because of some unforeseen emergency.

The addiction that gripped us. 

There I go—making my list of potential disasters. It’s what we do in the midst of those unexpected changes that seem beyond our control. It’s the foundation we build to will carry us through those time when life goes left when we had the right turn signal on. 

One of my favorite versus is: “We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps.” (Proverbs 16:9 ) It reminds me that planning is a balancing act between setting goals for our future and staying in today—accepting that God may lead us in a new direction. 

We do need to make plans. It is important to know where we are heading and what changes we need to make in our lives. Are you trying to get out of debt? Do you have a budget and someone who holds you accountable for your spending habits? Are you in recovery from an addition? Do you have a meeting to attend and people with whom you can share your journey? Are you looking for a new job, a new house, or a new car? Do you want to spend more time in ministry? Plan how you will get there, but get there a day at a time. And if you slip off the path on the way there, for whatever reason, get back on the path as soon as you can. 

Before you make a new list, I would like to challenge you to spend some time in prayer first. And then repeat the process every day, asking for God’s guidance, seeking wisdom reading your bible, and stepping into the day with the assurance that God goes before you and with you every step of the way.  Matthew recounts the words of Jesus in Matthew 6: 25-34: 

⁵ “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? ²⁶ Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? ²⁷ Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?

²⁸ “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, ²⁹ yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. ³⁰ And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?

³¹ “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ ³² These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. ³³ Seek the Kingdom of God^[d] above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

³⁴ “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.

Do what you can do today and don't be afraid to shift directions and make a new list!!