That's not what my planner says!

Summer is (almost) here! (The crowd wildly rejoices with tambourines and maracas!) Can you tell? Final exams are underway or completed for many of us; the summer wedding season has begun in full force; and I even got my first two mosquito bites. Along with the freedom from school, weddings, and mosquito bites come many plans. If you're anything like me, you have made many summer plans. A graduation in Michigan, a trip to the Arizona desert, camps, camps and more camps, family reunions . . . Summer is just plain FUN!

But, again, if you're anything like me, your summer plans may have already been a bit altered. Scheduling conflicts have disrupted some of my pre-existing plans, which has resulted in initial frustration on my part. As always, the Lord knows what's going on better than I do and has worked everything out just fine despite the conflicts. Through this, however, He's taught me a lesson.

James 4:13-15 says: "Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.' Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.'"

Hm. How often, when speaking of these exciting, anticipated plans of the summer, do you say, "If the Lord wills, we'll head to _____" I know I haven't; but with the recent upsets in my scheduled activities, the Lord has taught me I need to be in the practice of doing so. So, although it may not come naturally to us right away, I'd like to invite you on a challenge with me. We'll start with our summer plans. When asked "Are you doing anything this summer?" Preface your response, or wrap it up with the phrase: "Lord willing." I think as we realize more and more who is ultimately in control, we'll become even more dependent upon Him.