You and I simply never know for sure what?��s coming next. That about it: your life hasn?��t worked according to your plan. You couldn?��t have written yourself into your present situation twenty years ago. Last week didn?��t work according to your plan. Today won?��t work according to your plan.
This means that, every day, you deal with the unexpected, with things you didn?��t plan to have on your plate. Enter the principle of prepared spontaneity ?�� it sounds like a contradiction, but it isn?��t.
You actually can be prepared for things that you don?��t yet know you will face. You can be ready for things that you had no idea would come your way. In fact, I?��m persuaded that this is one of the main functions of Scripture.
God?��s Word enables us to be prepared to decide, think, desire, act, and speak well in a world in which we aren?��t sovereign. Here?��s how it works: if we have taken in what the Bible says about God, ourselves, life, sin, and the surrounding world, we?��re ready to deal spontaneously with things that we didn?��t expect.
But prepared spontaneity is not only about potential problems ?�� it?��s also about the message of promised provision. Yes, you need to be aware of what you're going to face in a fallen world, but it?��s also about knowing what you've been given so that you can face it with courage and hope.
How are you doing with prepared spontaneity? Here are a couple of questions that might help:
- In what ways are you still trying to be sovereign over your own life?
- Why might you struggle to accept the fact that life won?��t work according to your plan?
- How can you better prepare yourself for potential problems in this fallen world?
- How can you better remind yourself of the Gospel?��s promised provision?
God bless
Paul David Tripp
