If The Lord Wills - The Humility Project for Fathers

“Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’” (James 4:13-15, ESV)

We go into every day with certain expectations. We want to be somewhere on time, get things done, work on a project we enjoy, and maybe even relax. The kids, of course, will cooperate with all this. The greater the expectations, the greater the collateral damage. The more important our plans are to us, the more we will be ticked off by a child, spouse, roommate, neighbor, slow driver, or coworker who interferes with them. The greater the expectations, the greater the chance that we will love our own agenda more than love other people.

Ecclesiastes reminds us that we are not in control. I spoke to a friend who bought a new car this year but he couldn’t control the mystifying electronics—which one day kept him stranded on a country road for hours before a tow truck arrived. We can’t control the endless hassles of the day but we can control how we respond to adversity.

This, of course, is intended to be encouraging. Humility faces reality and listens to the God who is powerful and over all things. When you are humble, you can rest in God’s sovereignty and his forgiveness to those who come to him. He placed your sins on Jesus so that nothing would ever separate you from his steadfast love and care. Imagine how believing these truths about your heavenly Father could take the edge off your daily anxieties.

James offers a very practical way to put these truths into action. When adversity comes your way, ask yourself—will it be if the Lord wills or my will? But independence runs strong in us. Too often our natural way of thinking about God is that he is busy, and we are busy. So we both go about our day, meet up for a quick “hello,” and then do it again the next day. The truth, of course, is that God is very close and very much in and over all things. Remind yourself daily to say, if the Lord wills…

This phrase can be especially helpful when thinking about money and work—the sector of our lives we believe is uniquely our own. Imagine how your life would be different if you began your day by praying, “Here is what I hope to do today, but you are God. I want to rest in you and your will when I face the inevitable disappointments, frustrations, and inconveniences. I believe your ways are good, and I know I have no real control.” The inconveniences in our days are not interruptions to God’s plan; instead, they are opportunities to learn how to walk humbly with him.

Let’s say your day does not go as expected. In the past, if you were in public, you would have muttered something under your breath. This time, you come back to your spiritual senses and say, “Your will be done.”

Imagine it. To casual observers, you look like a patient man. Meanwhile, those with insight into spiritual reality see a man who knows both how to rest and fight bravely while his soul is being tested.

Here is something important: This passage is not about you being a humble slave who just submits to every misery. It is not about you being immune to disappointment and loss. It is about going to Jesus quicker—tell him that you are disappointed and tell him that you trust him. Tell him that all this reminds you that he is your rock, because nothing else is secure enough. Hear him when he says, “I love you and suffered on your behalf when you were an enemy.”

Be assured that now, as a friend, he is with you and has got this. This is the path of humility. It is about being more fully human, not less. You were created to know and depend on the Lord. Independence promises life, but it cannot deliver. This passage sets you on a path of real strength.