Have you ever been overwhelmed by your plans? It is the way of the world to make plans, always look to the future, and forget to be present. Most of us make plans because we are dissatisfied with the here and now. For those who are dissatisfied with the here and now, we make plans because we are told it is the responsible thing to do. However, does not today have enough that requires our attention? When we are present, we can be fully aware of what God is doing in our lives. What He is showing us and teaching us. Worrying about tomorrow does nothing but take our focus from right now. Right now has so much for us. In fact, scripture goes a step further and says, “Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” (James 4:13-15 NIV)

We are not to conform to the ways of the world. That is such a difficult task because we are surrounded by culture all the time. This is why right now requires so much of our attention. When we are distracted by the future and going to the next place in our lives, we tend to revert to autopilot. This is when we start acting the way the world acts and making rationalizations about being the way the world is. To have our minds renewed and transformed requires our ability to turn away from the ways of the world. We can only do this when we stay close to God and ask for His help in every area of our lives. Most especially in the areas where we do not know what to do. His will for us is right here. It is right now. There is certainly a time in each of our days when we do not know what to do. What do we do in those situations? Do we ask God for His direction or do we turn to the world? We stand a much better chance of not conforming to the world when we focus more on now. His will will be done. We must trust that.