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Week 1

The Best-Laid Plans …

Do not boast about tomorrow,

for you do not know what a day may bring forth.

He who tends a fig tree will eat its fruit,

and he who guards his master will be honored.

Know well the condition of your flocks,

and give attention to your herds;

for riches do not last for ever;

and does a crown endure to all generations?

Proverbs 27:1, 18, 23–24

Men tend to like order. When we make plans, we like to stick to them. We are also providers who want to make sure our families have what they need. Yet in this broken world of ours, situations change, human beings can be fickle, and unpredictable events pop up all the time. Just when we think everything is fine, a sudden illness comes along, a friend falls away, our employment changes, or some other disaster strikes. These realities teach us that to rely on our best-laid plans places us on shaky ground.

Though we are but dust and ashes, God enables us to live our lives and make plans for the future — plans that impact not just us, but those who will come after us as well. Yet, ultimately, God is in charge of everything, including the course of our lives and the legacy we leave behind. Still, we are called to be attentive to our responsibilities as Catholic men. This week, we will reflect on how we are to strike the balance between making plans and trusting God. We will consider the following points:

1. God cares about our efforts and rewards them.

While God is all-powerful and does not need our help (cf. Acts 17:25), he still calls us to take care of ourselves and those he has placed in our care. We have his promise that, if we are faithful to him, we will reap the harvest of our efforts and experience God’s provision.

2. God is the power that binds all things together.

We may feel we have control of our lives, but God alone is before all things and holds everything together (cf. Col 1:17). We have the power to make plans and direct our actions only because God has given it to us. Instead of relying on our own strength to prepare for our future, and for the generations that will follow us, we must rely on God alone.

3. God directs all things for good.

Often as we make our own plans, we forget that God’s plan for us is bolder, bigger, and much better than we could ever imagine. God has planned a future full of hope and not harm for his people (cf. Jer 29:11). We can trust that he directs all things for good (cf. Rom 8:28), knowing that our fear and doubt will give way to faith in the unfolding of his perfect will.

4. God’s purposes for our lives prevail.

We make many plans, but in the end it is God’s will that will stand (cf. Prv 19:21). We live, we work, and we plan for our future; yet in everything, God’s eternal and perfect will still comes to pass. He loves us that much.

5. We have no cause for worry.

God’s plan was never designed to cause us anxiety or fear. As we work to find our place and leave our mark in this life, we can allow the daily worries to give way to childlike trust, knowing God greatly desires to provide all that we need to complete the journey he has set for us.

This Week’s Call to Action

This week, be mindful of the sovereign God who calls us to journey toward tomorrow while relying on him to see us through. Though we have no guarantee of our next breath, we exist, we prosper, and we gain heaven all because of the love of God given to us in Christ. Thank God for his guidance and provision. Let your plans be centered on his promises and commands. Serve him by seeking his will and living it out in all you say and do. Take time for prayer, study, fellowship, and worship throughout the week.

As you interact with others, remember that nothing is a surprise to God. Nothing is beyond the scope of his will and his power to work all things out according to his divinely laid plans. Let this precious truth calm your fears and guide your steps as you work out your legacy and look toward a future where lives are changed, joy flows freely, and hope reveals itself in the plans that God has laid out for you.

Sunday

This week we will reflect on God’s sovereignty, and we will practice surrendering our plans before him in trusting submission. God calls each of us to lay our life before his throne, believing in his perfect plan. God cares about our efforts and rewards them, for he is the source of all good things. His plans prevail, and his plans are good. Yielding to those plans is the starting point to leaving a lasting legacy that will reflect the beauty, the grace, and the glory of the One who enables you to act to shape the Church and the world for good.

As you celebrate the Eucharist this Sunday, bring your plans into the church building and lay them down before the altar. As you listen to the readings, be mindful of the story of salvation and how, from the very beginning, God has been working all things out to the good. Thank him that you have been included in his plan of salvation and made a part of his Church. Consider how God’s plan has unfolded in your life and how your life is a reflection of the great love of Jesus, who died on the cross for your sins. As you receive the Eucharist, let the wonderful truth that God loves you that much sink deeply into your soul. Reflect on where you think your life is going and what plans you believe God still has for you. Thank him for his love and promise him that you will continue to live your life in trust, submission, and joy.

Questions for reflection

Do you find it difficult to yield to God’s plans? What are the parts of your life where this is hardest for you?

What practical steps can you take this week to start living in total surrender to God’s perfect, loving will?

Praying with Scripture

“Commit your work to the Lord, / and your plans will be established” (Prv 16:3).

Monday

God Cares about Our Efforts and Rewards Them

Then the King will say to those at his right hand, “Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.” Then the righteous will answer him, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?” And the King will answer them, “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.”

Matthew 25:34–40

God wants us to lay up our treasures in heaven (cf. Mt 6:20). We must be careful, then, about how we build upon the foundation he has laid in our lives, working out our salvation with fear and trembling (cf. Phil 2:12). God allows our efforts to produce real fruit in our lives and in the lives of those who come after us. In the end, his cleansing fire will reveal what that fruit has been (cf. 1 Cor 3:13), and we will receive God’s reward for our efforts.

What we do matters, not only because God allows our actions to have an impact on the world, but because as Christians we are called to do all for his glory. The deeds we do on earth determine the reward we will receive from God. Let us remember that our service — especially to the least in God’s kingdom — also leaves a legacy for future generations.

Questions for reflection

Are you laying up your treasure in heaven, or are you sometimes tempted to plan only for the needs of this life?

How are you connecting your works of mercy with God’s overall plan for your life?

Where have you seen your labors produce real fruit in the life of someone else?

Praying with Scripture

“Whatever your task, work heartily, as serving the Lord and not men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward; you are serving the Lord Christ” (Col 3:23–24).

Tuesday

God Is the Power That Binds All Things Together

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 get gain”; whereas you do not know about tomorrow. 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 shall live and we shall do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.

James 4:13–16

God is God and we are not. This means our plans must give way to the perfection of his will. We often believe that we have total control over our lives and that everything is up to us. While we can and should make important decisions about our lives, we must accept that we are dependent on the Lord for our next breath. God is truly the author and perfecter of our faith (cf. Heb 12:2). Our lives and our plans are completely in his hands.

By recognizing that God is the source of all we do, we align our actions to his will. This brings us great freedom from worry and enables us to move forward, trusting in his sovereign care for our lives. It gives us confidence, strength, and purpose in all we do, allowing us to respond to his commands with joy and hope for the future. We know that our lasting legacy is in heaven, not here on earth.

Questions for reflection

Is it hard for you to relinquish control of your life? What are some of the areas where this is hardest for you, and why?

Has there been a time in your life when yielding to God’s will brought you prosperity and peace?

What are some upcoming decisions in your life that you need to give over to God’s care?

Praying with Scripture

“He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Col 1:17).

Wednesday

God Directs All Things for Good

For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me; when you seek me with all your heart.

Jeremiah 29:11–13

Just as God spoke peace into the life of the prophet Jeremiah, so too does he assure us of his perfect care for every detail of our existence. We can remain hopeful about the future, whatever it might hold. Ultimately, God has the greatest good in store for us: the glory of his eternal presence

It can be easy to forget, as we get caught up in our own plans, that God has a plan, and his plan includes us. We can trust absolutely in the goodness of God’s design. Those of us who are fathers have seen the trust that our children have in us. They are willing to follow our direction and learn from us because they know we love them and have their best interests at heart. In the same way, we must respond to God the Father like little children, each day taking new steps toward the goals our heavenly Father has set for us. Let us take those steps with joy, knowing our Father is directing all things to the good for those of us who love him (cf. Rom 8:28).

Questions for reflection

What parts of your life are you still trying to handle on your own?

How has your relationship with God shaped your decisions about the future?

This week, how can you help a brother who struggles to trust in God’s good plans?

Praying with Scripture

“A man’s mind plans his way, / but the Lord directs his steps” (Prv 16:9).

Thursday

God’s Purposes for Our Lives Prevail

I am God, and there is none like me,

declaring the end from the beginning

and from ancient times things not yet done,

saying, “My counsel shall stand,

and I will accomplish all my purpose,”

calling a bird of prey from the east,

the man of my counsel from a far country.

I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass;

I have planned, and I will do it.

Isaiah 46:9–11

Isaiah spoke these words to assure God’s people that the Lord would use the powerful pagan leader Cyrus (whose symbol was an eagle) to restore them to their homeland. The Jews had been taken into captivity because of their sins, yet God’s purposes for their lives would stand. He would bring about the victory. His promise to the ancient Israelites also pointed forward to the coming of Christ, the ultimate source of our salvation. We are part of a wonderful story, spoken into existence from eternity, carried out according to the perfect will of Almighty God.

Just as God has brought us salvation in Jesus, so he guides every aspect of our lives. We sin and stumble on the way, but we can never upset God’s perfect plan. In spite of everything, his plan prevails and will prevail. As we take our many daily decisions and lay them at the throne of God’s grace, we can be certain that he will bring them to fruition according to his wonderful design. What an awesome blessing it is to be able to participate in such a wonderful legacy of love and faithfulness!

Questions for reflection

Have you seen God’s purposes for your life unfold even through unusual circumstances? What were those circumstances?

How has learning to trust God changed your relationship with him?

What good work is God doing in your life today that will have a lasting impact on the world?

Praying with Scripture

“Many are the plans in the mind of a man, / but it is the purpose of the Lord that will be established” (Prv 19:21).

Friday

We Have No Cause for Worry

And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat, nor about your body, what you shall put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And which of you by being anxious can add a cubit to his span of life? If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? Consider the lilies, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass which is alive in the field today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O men of little faith! And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be of anxious mind. For all the nations of the world seek these things; and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things shall be yours as well.”

Luke 12:22–31

We need never worry about tomorrow. All the concerns of life, important as they are, are under God’s care and control. God wants to give us what we need, and he always gives it to us joyfully. Even in the midst of our deepest trials, he is there, loving us and providing the strength we need to see the journey through to the end. For our part, he asks only that we trust him for all our needs. We can bring him every pain and sorrow and celebrate every joy with him.

Often we shape our plans around our security and our happiness, forgetting that we have no real control over our future. God, however, has our very lives in his hands. In Christ, we can live free from the cares and concerns about what is to come, and by yielding to God’s care, accomplish great things for the Kingdom of God. There is no need God cannot meet and no situation he cannot work according to his will for those who seek first his kingdom and his righteousness.

Questions for reflection

When has God taken your anxiety and worry and brought you comfort and peace?

What are some earthly treasures you might be holding a little too close to your heart?

What can you do to allow God’s will to unfold more freely in your life and the lives of those you meet?

Praying with Scripture

“We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him, who are called according to his purpose” (Rom 8:28).

Saturday

Go Deeper

Do I believe that God wants to give me good things? Are there parts of my life where I struggle to trust in his goodness?

Have I surrendered my plans to God’s perfect plans, or am I clinging to certain designs and hopes of my own?

Do I seek God’s glory in everything that I do, or are some of my plans motivated by selfishness?

What parts of my life do I need to surrender to the care of my heavenly Father?

Has God brought good out of my struggles in the past? What were those struggles, and what was their outcome? How can I use those experiences to grow in trust?

Have I helped others trust more completely in God, or have my words and actions contributed to anxiety and lack of trust? What can I do to assist those around me who struggle to trust in God’s plans?