agendas vs. accomplishments

a lot of us have agendas. we set and manage to-do lists, and we do our best to follow them. some of us know exactly what we plan to do for the coming day down to the minute.

but amidst all of the various tasks on our schedules, how many meaningful things do we actually accomplish?

have you ever had the feeling, upon reflecting on the day that has just passed, that you didn't really do anything at all? it could be that a) we're not that good at setting our agendas, allowing them to become filled with lesser priorities, or b) we don't really set our own agendas, answering to external demands. neither option sounds good.

so it is that we find ourselves with lots of things to do, not enough time to do them, and not enough time for anything else, really. nothing spontaneous. nothing different (unless one of us were to be so inventive as to include doing something different on our agenda).

"in his heart a man plans his course,

but the LORD determines his steps."

- proverbs 16:9

when things don't work according to plan, we often get frustrated, stressed and annoyed. but sometimes i think that that's what it takes for God to get our attention. otherwise, we could just focus on our task lists and rush around without ever paying attention to anything else.