My wife and I are still reasonably healthy and yet – we recently moved into a nursing home.  We bought a house that was originally designed to be the last home of an aging couple. 

So, they built for themselves a practical one-level ranch.  Included were grab bars positioned next to the toilet and the bathtub for the day that their legs would lose their lift. 

There is a nice bench in the walk-in shower for a mid-shower rest.  And the halls in the house are wide enough to accommodate a king-sized wheelchair or a dump truck if needed.

They were thinking ahead and were therefore able to comfortably live out their last days in the home that they had built. 

The Lord applauds that kind of planning and preparation for the future.

For instance, Proverbs 21:5 says, “Careful planning puts you ahead in the long run.”   I believe ahead is quite a bit better than behind.”

Consider the ant for example. Solomon wrote, “Watch it closely; let it teach you a thing or two. Nobody has to tell it what to do.  All summer it stores up food; at harvest it stockpiles provisions.”  – Proverbs 6:6-8

The ant plans for the future.  He gathers and stores when he can, so he will have food when it is needed.

There will certainly be someone who would object saying, “Planning is contrary to believing.  We need to walk by faith and trust God for the future.”

Well, we certainly do need to trust God.   Proverbs 16:9 says, “We plan the way we want to live, but only God makes us able to live it.”  Our plans need to be made on our knees.  

But planning is not at odds with our faith.  Jesus said, “Is there anyone here who, planning to build a new house, doesn’t first sit down and figure the cost so you’ll know if you can complete it? If you only get the foundation laid and then run out of money, you’re going to look pretty foolish. Everyone passing by will poke fun at you…” –  Luke 14:28-30  Jesus clearly understood the need to plan.

So for what do we plan?

Sarah is headed off to college, – but she needs to check out the job market before she gets that degree in bagpipe technology. 

Lamar is so excited about his beautiful brand-new baby girl.  Oh, but there will be an expensive wedding in her future.  He may need to start setting aside a little money for that. 

I have friends who do a yearly inventory of their marriage, and then make specific plans for dates, trips and so on to help strengthen their marriage in the year to come.

Terrell and Tammy are in their fifties now.  They are finally starting to plan for retirement, but the projections are not looking so good.  They really regret not having started to save when they were younger.

Planning works with lesser things as well.  Who hasn’t gone on a trip and forgotten their toothbrush?  Consider downloading a travel checklist app or create your own.

Store the list in your computer and print it out and use it each time you pack for a trip.  You’ll never forget your toothbrush again, and the airline passenger next to you will thank you for it.

And what about your forever future?  We can plan and prepare for that as well.  John 3:16 says, “For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”  NETBible ®

How does the old adage go, “When we fail to plan, we plan to fail.” Seems true enough to be in the Bible.  

As for me I am planning to go sit down and take a shower!

A PRAYER: Lord pry us from the present to help us plan for what’s ahead.

This has been Jim Johnson and pickleheavenpress.com

May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

(Unless otherwise noted, Scripture is from THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language © 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved.)