Motorcycles and Plans

"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." - Matthew 6:33-34

In kindergarten I wanted to be a teacher. (It was that or a Target cashier)
In third grade I wanted to be a third grade teacher. (I decided Target was not a viable option)
In seventh grade I wanted to be a seventh grade teacher. (Or possibly work at NASA)
Freshman year I wanted to be a high school english teacher. (Spoiler: I'm not an education major)
Then people started asking me about a major. I started responding that it would be psychology, I'm still not sure where I got that idea. Almost too late to prepare, I decided I should also do music.
I made my choice; I moved into a dorm; and I thought I was home free for awhile.
Then I started making more plans. I look at graduate programs and where I want to go. I ponder doctorate programs and what I want to do with my degrees.

Everytime I make a decision, someone asks me to think ahead a little further.
I keep living my life in the future, always striving for the next step.
What about now? What are we doing now? Is worries and plans standing ahead of the moment?

Are we loving people?
Are we seeking Jesus?
Are we pursuing passions?
Are we living?


Tonight a couple friends and I went to Froyos and then on a drive. We were pulling out of the parking lot, belting bad pop lyrics when everything stopped. I had been staring out the back windows enjoying the darkness and relaxing when my friends started screaming.
Across the intersection, a woman pulling into McDonalds had hit a man on a motorcycle. Slowly the man got up and wheeled his bike off to the side. No damage was visible, and traffic resumed.

It's a fact I so often forget. I'm lost in my world of homework, exams, RA duties, and friendships. My version of living moment by moment often is living up my limited time to relax and nothing more. Easily, that situation could have taken a turn for the worst. Someone's late night McDonald's run almost went terribly wrong. In an instant that man's life could have changed forever - or been taken.

Every instant counts. We never know when we could be that guy - when that one wrong place-wrong time accident could happen. We never want to believe that it could be us. To have plans and dreams - to want and strive for a future is a needed part of life. The problem is when it becomes life. Because everything is changing by the moment.

Are we doing what counts, or relying on the motions to barely survive?