School has officially started for most students across the map. Books are to be ordered, teachers are handing out assignments left to right, and planners are being covered in ink. Going back to school has many components that causes students to undergo immense stress and anxiety. (I happen to be one of those students, so this is definitely a mirror post for me.) In order to be successful, we must find our groove early. Playing catch-up is the worst game to start, because it never ends. Instead of being subject to the weight of stress and disorganization, we should submit our semester to the sovereign hand of God relying on him to guide us.

With life being the board game, we move the pawns but are also the pawns being moved.

An Avid Planner
The bible calls us to be smart with our lives and to manage our time well. The Psalmist writes, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom” (Ps. 90:12).  In the New Testament, the gospel of Luke even declares it silly to not think through our decisions (14:28). Some may think that we are to sluggardly go about our days, yet the Lord calls us to be diligent (Prov. 6:6; 21:5).

The bible supports having a schedule and being responsible. Some enjoy planning to the hour whereas others live a more spontaneous life. Whatever the case, in order to physically survive and professionally succeed in such a demanding, work-overloaded society, we must plan ahead. If not, we will surely fall behind, miss deadlines and disintegrate mentally.

The Avid Planner
While we are enabled to plan the majority of our lives, we must realize that we are part of a bigger plan. In other words, with life being the board game, we move the pawns but are also the pawns being moved. It is a mind-boggling concept, but it is true.

Many are the plans in a person’s heart,
but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.
Proverbs 19:21

It is normal that we have planned out our honeymoon and unborn children’s names. God knows what we hope to do tomorrow, yet He promises us a better plan and a greater hope (Jer. 29:11). In Isaiah, the bible describes the plans of the Lord as wonderful, his wisdom as magnificent (28:29). Moreover, we can be comforted that the Lord’s ways are higher than our own (55:8) which means our best plans fall short to what He has in store!

Be comforted, my peers. Ask the Lord for peace, my friend. There is freedom in your current season, for the Word of the Lord promises us that God will establish our plans, if and only if, we commit to Him in whatever we do (Proverbs 16:3). I am praying for each of us as we start yet another school year. God has set us out for success, so let us find our groove and succeed.