Plans

Today did not go as planned.  That’s not to say that it was a bad day.  It just didn’t go as planned.  It’s important to plan and be prepared, but sometimes all my plans are pointless.  Sometimes I just have to go with the flow.  Sometimes plans and expectations lead to disappointments.  Today I learned some things about expectations, disappointments and about letting things go.  I’m still processing, but here’s what I understand so far.

·      Eckhart Tolle’s admonition to “Resist nothing” is a good one.  It doesn’t always have to be true for every situation, but trusting the process can be very freeing. 

·      Trusting God can be even more freeing.  Einstein is said to have asked, “Is it a friendly universe?”  I have a different question: “Is God a friendly God?”  I believe He is.  He is also a loving God with the best plans and intentions for each of us.  Stress often comes when I don’t believe this.  Trusting God might be the only thing that can apply in all situations.

·      Clear communication is crucial, with God, with others and with ourselves.  This is often a time consuming process.  But it is less time consuming than suffering through the torment of misunderstanding.

·      It helps to assume the best in people’s intentions.  It also helps to not assume everyone’s journey is the same.

·      I agree with theologian and writer Calvin Miller who said, “There are many truths.”  What might appear as someone struggling with resistance and not striving to reach his or her goals might be that person listening to God’s voice and waiting for the right timing.

·        If I make plans and they don’t come to fruition, that might be for the best.  If it’s not, I can still find peace and perhaps even meaning in my disappointment. We’re not meant to be anxious or unhappy. 

·      I believe I should always be striving for meaning in life.  That will often create happiness, which is something most of us desire. 

·      Acceptance, as I’ve said before, is not acquiescence.  It is simply acknowledging that things don’t always go the way we want.  That acknowledgement is the beginning of change.

·      Life is a journey.  But sometimes the journey requires times of rest.  Sometimes the journey requires that we enjoy the scenery and not hurry through life.

That last bit made me feel as if I’m wandering into cliché.  So, all I can conclude from today is that I don’t know everything.  I don’t need to know everything.  There’s a lot of joy in discovery.  All I really need to do is Get Started and Keep Going.  I’ll learn as I go along.  I will also unlearn and relearn.  I will also realize that, as I’ve said, nothing I know or believe to be true applies in every situation.  Not even Get Started and Keep Going.