If you’ve ever looked ahead at your calendar, your finances, or your future and thought, I just want to know what’s coming next, you’re not alone. Planning is part of being human. We plan our weeks, our careers, our families, our ministries, and even our downtime. And on the surface, there’s nothing wrong with that.
In fact, Scripture often commends planning. But in James 4, we’re reminded that how we plan matters just as much as what we plan.
As a church in Fort Collins, this passage meets us right where we live—busy, capable, responsible, and often tempted to believe we’re more in control than we actually are.
When Planning Quietly Turns Into Pride
James begins with words that sound surprisingly ordinary:
“Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, carry on business and make a profit.” (James 4:13)
Nothing outrageous. Nothing obviously sinful. Just normal, responsible planning.
But James sees something deeper. Beneath the routines and schedules, he identifies what could be called arrogance cloaked in routine—a subtle assumption that we control outcomes and that God’s role is simply to bless what we’ve already decided.
The problem isn’t planning. The problem is planning without reference to God.
You Don’t Know Tomorrow—and That’s Actually Good News
James presses the point further:
“You do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” (James 4:14)
That sounds sobering—and it is. Our lives are fragile, fleeting, and limited. But James isn’t trying to depress us. He’s offering freedom.
When we accept that we don’t control tomorrow, we’re released from the exhausting burden of pretending we do. We’re freed to trust the One who does hold tomorrow.
Like a sailor who plans carefully but cannot command the wind, we’re invited to plan wisely while trusting God completely.
“If the Lord Wills” Is More Than a Phrase
James offers a reorientation:
“Instead, you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’” (James 4:15)
This isn’t a throwaway Christian phrase. It’s a heart posture.
To say if the Lord wills is to:
- Confess dependence on God for every breath and opportunity
- Hold plans with open hands
- Acknowledge that God is not a spoke in our lives, but the hub
When planning is surrendered to God, it becomes an act of worship—not an expression of pride.
Knowing the Right Thing—and Doing It
James ends this section with a challenging reminder:
“If anyone knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.” (James 4:17)
In context, this isn’t about generic morality. It’s about willful independence from God. To know that life belongs to Him and still live as if it belongs to us is not just a mistake—it’s rebellion disguised as responsibility.
A Warning About Wealth and Self-Sufficiency
James then gives a case study in chapter 5, addressing those who trusted their wealth and comfort instead of God. Their planning led to exploitation, indulgence, and injustice.
The message is clear: God cares deeply not just about what we have, but how we get it and what we do with it.
Wealth, success, and comfort are not neutral when they replace dependence on God.
A Better Way to Live and Plan
James doesn’t tell us to stop planning. He calls us to plan under God.
Here’s what that looks like:
- Plan prayerfully and humbly
- Work diligently without assuming outcomes
- Treat others justly and honor commitments
- Resist making comfort the ultimate goal
- Invest in eternal treasure, not temporary security
This kind of planning doesn’t restrict us—it frees us.
Trusting the God Who Holds Tomorrow
As we gather for Sunday services, this passage invites us to examine the posture of our hearts. Are we planning with God—or without Him?
You were never meant to hold your future together on your own.
God holds the calendar. He holds the balance sheet. He holds the unexpected diagnosis, the job change, the opportunity, and the unknown.
So may we be people who plan well—but trust better.
If the Lord wills.