The saying, plan your work and then work your plan is well known to all of us, yet we believe that we should stop and think just how important it is for us to have a definite plan and goal in life. Certainly our ultimate goal is to have a place in God’s soon coming kingdom. In order to achieve this goal we each need to plan our work and then to work our plan. It is almost impossible for human minds to focus on any one thing as great as the Kingdom of God, so we each must, daily, plan our course, overcoming in ourselves, with the help of prayer, the particular weaknesses or temptations which we have.
We might compare this daily planning to that of a builder of a home or a large building. It would be wonderful if anyone could sit down and envision a large building and then by picking up a few tools, nails and stones, build it to suit his dreams. Unfortunately this cannot be done. A builder spends many years studying the laws of engineering, architecture, design, etc. All who can envision a building are not builders and without the necessary combination of plans, engineering and hard work, the building would become a meaningless pile of material.
How Can I Remember?
It is imperative that we have a definite plan for reaching our one objective, the Kingdom of God. We might ask ourselves, what particular weakness or temptation shall I overcome ? How should I form a daily plan, and how can I remember the daily resolutions that I have made?
Let us start with our own personal weaknesses. It would be wrong for anyone of us to say to someone else, “this or that is a weakness of yours,” for we are told “God alone knows the heart” and each one of us in our own heart knows the problem areas we need to work on. Paul had the same wrestling’s we have for he declared “For that which I do, I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.” It is perhaps encouraging to us to realize that Paul had to fight the same kind of battles that we face.
The builder we mentioned earlier, through his training, has made a mental list of hazards to watch for. Among these are improper soil conditions, faulty concrete, improper grades of lumber, or to sum up all these items, generally unfit materials for a building. We also, through our training, are warned and should make a mental list of evils or weaknesses to watch for. Beware of false pride, bear not false witness, serve not mammon, and love not the things of this world. We should all admit to ourselves, one at a time, our great temptations. If it is necessary write them down, and every day look at them carefully and say, “Today I will earnestly strive to overcome this one thing.
We all make notes or reminders pertaining to our job, or plans for tomorrow, why not for this ? Constant referral to this list will soon make us aware and help us to put this weakness behind us. An experienced builder is aware of all the problems connected with his profession, he is constantly alert looking for these problems that daily come up in his business. If we are daily alert as-to our own particular problem, we will not be as apt to submit to it again.
Next we may ask ourselves, “how should we form a daily plan?” We think the best answer to this is that a plan has already been laid out for us. It is there to be found, in the scriptures, written by wise men who were inspired by God.
Seek Those Things Above
Paul told the Colossians “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ, in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in Glory. Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry. For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: In which ye also walked sometime, when ye lived in them. BUT . . . now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of Him that created him: Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision, nor uncircumcision, bond or free: but Christ is all, and in all. Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long suffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfectness. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful . . . And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; knowing that of the Lord, ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.”
These are wonderful words to live by, if only we can keep them foremost in our minds. It is hard in this day and age to remind ourselves constantly of these important truths, but we should remember, yea we must remember that God has called us and has promised us eternal life and endless happiness in his great kingdom.
We can all look back and remember a “golden opportunity” that we have passed by only because it was too much effort or we were too busy or perhaps it did not seem worth the work involved.
Follow a Pattern
The only way we can have Christ with us at all times is to follow a pattern of daily living that puts him first in our lives. We need to “work our plan” of seeking first the kingdom of God. This does not come naturally. If it did, then all the people in the earth today would be subjects of God’s never ending kingdom, but we know that this is not so.
We must work, work hard, and in the right direction for without following a daily plan or pattern we will soon see that all we have is a dreamer’s pile of material but no order, and no building.
Perhaps if we ask ourselves every day a few searching questions and resolve to answer them correctly, it will help us to stay on the road to the kingdom.
Question Number One
The first question we might ask is, Do I spend too much of my time each day thinking about my job? To help keep things in their proper perspective, then let us promise ourselves that we will three times a day stop whatever we are doing and approach God in prayer and thank Him for calling us out of the world and showing us the way to the kingdom.
Question Number Two
Next we need to probe our feelings and ask ourselves, “Do I feel sorry for myself?” The answer to this maybe in forcing myself to think in detail of the trials and temptations that Jesus and Paul endured and realize that mine are nothing in comparison to theirs.
Question Number Three
The third question we should ask ourselves daily is, “Am I hesitant to preach the truth to a neighbor or an associate at work ?” After all, they probably wouldn’t be interested anyway. Today, I will try to tell at least one person, “Jesus Christ is coming back to this earth and he is going to set up an everlasting kingdom for all those who love him and keep his commandments.
Question Number Four
The fourth question I need to ask myself is, “Am I too concerned with the importance of money? Am I too ambitious in trying to get ahead in worldly pursuits ?” Then I need to answer this by remembering the parable that Jesus told about the man who pulled down his barns and built bigger ones. Jesus said, “Thou fool, this night thy soul shall, be required of thee: then whose shall those things be which thou hast provided ? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”
Our life really can be better, richer, and more fulfilling if we can just plan to ask ourselves these four questions each day and then give ourselves the scriptural answers we need to remind us that we are such a privileged and blessed people.
The more we pray the more we will be in tune with God. We are told that “men ought always to pray and not to faint.” If we don’t plan to pray, perhaps we won’t.
Let us begin each day with a plan. Let us plan to pray more, think more about our God and our savior, do more, love more. Then let us work at working this plan and soon we will find that our lives truly are being transformed by the renewing of our minds. “If these things be in us and abound, they will make us that we shall, neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One