“Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin" (James 4:13-17).
What are your dreams, plans and goals for the future? Too many people place emphasis in all the wrong places when they think about the future and what they will do with their lives. We are prone to be too earth-bound in our thinking and to leave God out of our plans. People need to take life inventory. James's question, “What is your life?", when properly viewed, will enable us to take a life inventory.
What is your life from the standpoint of duration? It is a vapor (James 4:14-15); it is here only briefly and then is gone. James is saying stop and consider! Before making plans for the future, determine what sort of life you have. Is it permanent, abiding, enduring; will it be here tomorrow, next week, or the following year? “For my days are but a breath" (Job 7:16). “Remember how short my time is" (Psalm 89:47). “There is but a step between me and death" (1 Samuel 20:3). Man's days on earth are pictured as a flower that is cut down, and therefore soon withers (Job 14:1-2; James 1:10-11). Man's days on earth are pictured as a fleeing shadow (Job. 14:2). Life passes quickly as the “eagle hasteth to the prey" (Job 9:26). Man lives but one time on earth (Hebrews 9:27). With life as uncertain as this, how foolish are we to plan the future without regard to Him Who holds the future in His hands? Boasting of a definite future on earth is evil because it denies God's power and will (James 4:15-16).
It is imperative that we recognize that God has a plan and a will for life on this earth. “Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him I for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him" (Isaiah 43:7). What should be man's purpose in life? "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths" (Proverbs 3:5-6). We are to trust in God! If we will let Him direct us, then our lives will be immensely enriched. A study of Ecclesiastes reveals that Solomon tried basically the things that men try in their effort to find a purpose for being; the conclusion of chapter 12, verses 13, 14, is a studied conclusion: "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil."
Your life is a gift from God and is to be used for His glory. All men need to be confronted with the question: "What is your life?" We are urged to "examine ourselves" (2 Corinthians 13:5). The following poem should focus attention on this article.
The clock of life is wound but once,
And no man has the power
To tell just when the hands will stop,
At late or early hour.
To lose one's wealth is sad, indeed,
To lose one's health is more;
To lose one's soul is such a loss,
And no man can restore.
The present only is our own,
Live, love, toil with a will;
Place no faith in "Tomorrow",
For the clock may then be still.