How are You Planning Your Life?

People plan for everything in life. They plan for weddings, funerals, vacations, trips, retirement, game opponents, exams, etc. However, one area that most people do not plan for is how they want to live their life. They do not live their life with the end in mind. Throughout the years, I’ve observed that talking about death makes people very uncomfortable.

Case in point: many years ago, I was officiating a funeral. I watched many in attendance squirm during the funeral service while I was sharing about the brevity of life. We “pay our respects” and “offer our condolences,” but rarely do we take personal inventory of our spiritual life and where we’ll spend eternity when we die. For the Christian, the “End” is not death but only the beginning. The “End” is the culmination of a lifetime pursuit of intimacy with God. Death simply becomes the conduit into the presence of Almighty God. Living with that “End” in mind, the Christian should daily exercise faith in an unseen, almighty, all-powerful, awesome God.

In my case, I asked myself decades ago, “What do I want my life to look like when I take my final breath on this earth?” “What ripple effect do I want my life to leave on this earth?” Not just as a husband, father, friend, or MLB baseball scout, but what do I want to be true of me as a disciple-making follower of Jesus Christ? To accomplish this, I must have a focused, detailed plan. As a disciple of Christ, I want to know at the end of my life that I demonstrated more love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control. I want to know that I have belonged, magnified, served, grown, managed, shared, and multiplied my life. I want to know that my life will make an eternal impact that will far outlive me.

Listen closely: If you want to “live your life with the end in mind,” you must develop a plan to help you become the person God wants you to be. It helps you identify what you want to be true of your life—and then work the action steps in your plan to ensure you grow and develop each area of your life. Truthfully, very few people make it a priority to live their life this way. Instead of developing a life plan to hit their target, most people “wing it” or get distracted by the cares of the world that come their way.

Don’t miss the following truth: “If you aim at nothing, you’ll hit it every time.” I suggest that you plan your life—and then live out your plan. Never forget, if you fail to plan, then plan to fail. If you need help to formulate a plan, I can help you; simply ask. After all, if you are a Christian, your life belongs to Christ, and He should be the One you’re living for every day.

As you go about your everyday life, be thankful that God has revealed in Scripture that the day is coming when Jesus Christ will return as King of kings and Lord of lords.

There is an appointed time when you will die. Therefore, live your life with the end in mind.