In a hurry? Need it now? Can’t wait? If so you’re a ripe target for advertisers and politicians making their pitch, but a Biblical proverb says, “Impatience runs into folly; advancement comes by careful thought.” (Prov. 14:17) It’s very important to think ahead and make plans for our lives plans based on good information and careful thought and then follow through to get good results, to advance.
As Seneca, the Roman philosopher, said, “Our plans miscarry because they have no aim. When a man does not know what harbor he is making for, no wind is the right wind.” Many people live their lives without a clear sense of purpose and without reasoned goals. They don’t know where they’re going, so they don’t know how to get there. Often they fall victim to a philosophy warned against in the Bible, “Let’s eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.” (1 Cor. 15:32) In fact, as a lifestyle this is a self-fulfilling premise. Grabbing the gusto often means flirting with death. Seek death, and you may find it; expect to fail, and you most likely will fail. Life should be lived, not in desperate grabs for pleasure and hasty consumption, not moment by moment, but in the context of eternity, knowing that today does make a difference for tomorrow.
Someone else has said, “More people fail through lack of purpose than through lack of talent.” We see this kind of failure everywhere around us, the failure of purpose, even in people who have achieved great power and influence only to fail in utilizing it. A life well lived requires a certainty of purpose, not hasty impatience and constantly floundering for a new direction. Certainty of purpose calls for thought and planning and gathering useful information. The most useful information any of us will ever find for planning a life well lived is in the Bible. That information, which comes from the Infinite God, deserves careful consideration. It has a proven track record of success. Advancement comes by careful thought. Read your Bible, and think carefully. Choose your harbor, and plan for the future, and then follow through to get good results and advance.
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