Living by God's Will

 

“Come now, you who say, “today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit, ¹⁴yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes” (James 4:13-14)

How many of us have repeated this saying: "If God wills, or If the Lord wills..."? Many times, when we say this saying, we don't think about the profound and true meaning of these words. Why? Because in reality, our entire life—every day, every hour, every minute of it—depends on God's will.

These three simple words carry within them a universe of meaning that we often overlook in our hurried daily existence. When we calmly say, "If God wills," we're acknowledging, perhaps without realizing it, one of the most fundamental truths of human existence: we are not the ultimate authors of our own story. Yet how often do we live as if we were?

James asks a critical question for us to reflect on: What is our life? Have you thought about the answer to that question? It's a question that stops us in our tracks, forcing us to confront the reality of our existence beyond the noise of our daily routines, our plans, and our carefully built schedules.

The answer James gives us is also significant: “We are like a mist that appears and disappears in a short time”. In other words, our lives are temporary. This metaphor is both humbling and beautiful. Think of morning mist rising from a lake or a mountain, present one moment and gone the next. There's something almost poetic about this comparison, yet it carries a sobering truth. Our lives, no matter how significant they may seem to us, are but a brief moment in the grand tapestry of eternity.

Nothing and no one guarantees that you will live another day. This isn't meant to instill fear, but rather to awaken us to the preciousness of each moment we're given. Every sunrise is a gift, every breath an act of divine grace. It is only by God's will that we live, that our hearts continue to beat, that our lungs continue to draw air.

We often live lives out of control, outside of God's will. How easy it is to fall into this pattern! We wake up each morning assuming the day belongs to us, making plans as if we were guaranteed tomorrow, pursuing goals as if our strength and wisdom alone would secure them. We schedule our lives down to the minute, fill our calendars with appointments and commitments, and rarely pause to ask, "Lord, what would You have me do today?"

We often want to use this saying to justify our behavior or the decisions we make, as if God's will be for us not to obey Him. This is perhaps one of our greatest spiritual deceptions—using God's sovereignty as an excuse for our disobedience or laziness. We might say, "Well, if God wills it, it will happen," while neglecting the very responsibilities and callings He has placed before us.

James commends us to think differently. Instead of seeing the Christian life as just another commitment in life, we must understand that everything we do, we do to serve the Lord. My plans are His plans. This shift in perspective changes everything. Suddenly, our work becomes worship, our relationships become ministry opportunities, and our challenges become chances to demonstrate faith.

The story goes that the great composer Johann Sebastian Bach, upon finishing each of his compositions, would write the letters SDG. These letters stand for Soli Deo Gloria, to God Alone be the Glory. This was Bach's way of reminding himself that his music wasn't a way to do a job, it was a way to honor God. Bach understood that his extraordinary talent was not his own achievement, but a gift from the Creator to be used for the Creator's glory.

Imagine if we approached every task, every conversation, every decision with Bach's mindset. What if we ended our workdays, our parenting moments, our acts of service with the same dedication: "To God alone be the glory"? How different would our lives look if we truly believed that our abilities, our opportunities, and our very existence are gifts to be stewarded for His purposes?

We must learn to depend on God's self-sufficiency and understand that His will for our lives is to give us His best. This doesn't mean life will be easy or that all our desires will be fulfilled according to our timeline. Rather, it means trusting that the One who created us knows what we truly need for abundant life, both now and in eternity.

We, too, must honor God by giving Him our best. Not our leftovers, not our second efforts, not what remains after we've served our interests first. Our best energy, our finest gifts, our deepest devotion belong to Him who gave us life itself.

May God bless you and keep you, and may these words renew your spirit as you surrender each moment to His perfect will.

Dr. Dimas Castillo

Cast It All on Him

 

“Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.” – Psalm 55:22

Are you overwhelmed by the weight of a burden you were never meant to carry? Life often piles responsibilities, anxieties, and fears on our shoulders, and before we know it, we bend under the load. King David, inspired by the Holy Spirit, offers timeless counsel that can free us from the crushing pressure: “Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you.”

The word cast in Hebrew is vivid. It means to throw, hurl, shed, or fling—using all your strength to propel something as far from you as possible. The picture is not of gently setting something down or tucking it in a corner, but of forcefully removing it from your possession. It’s as if God is saying, “Don’t just hand it to Me—get rid of it. I’ll take it.”

David understood the need for such action. As King of Israel, he carried enormous responsibility for the nation’s security, justice, and worship. But beyond the weight of his office, David bore personal burdens—betrayals from friends, attacks from enemies, and deep regret over his own failures. His record was far from spotless. His sins were public, his family struggles were messy, and his enemies were relentless.

Yet David knew where to take the crushing weight. He didn’t hide it, carry it alone, or pretend it didn’t exist. He brought it to the Lord. He knew God was not just able to hear, but willing to sustain him. David had learned that God’s grace is deeper than our guilt, His mercy wider than our mistakes, and His strength greater than our weakness.

So, what about you? What burdens are you carrying right now? Perhaps it’s the financial strain that keeps you up at night. Maybe it’s a fractured relationship that leaves you feeling powerless to fix what’s broken. It could be the anxiety of an uncertain future, the guilt over past decisions, or the quiet ache of grief that no one else fully understands. You might be shouldering expectations that feel impossible to meet—at work, at home, or even in your own mind.

Here’s the truth: you don’t have to carry them. You were never meant to. God has not called you to be self-sufficient; He has called you to be God-dependent.

When Peter echoes this same truth in the New Testament— “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7), he reminds us that casting is an act of trust. It’s saying, “God, I believe You can handle this better than I can.” It’s releasing control to the only One who truly has control.

But here’s the challenge: we often “set” our burdens before God rather than “casting” them. We lay them down in prayer, but before we say amen, we’ve picked them back up again. Casting requires decisive action, a choice, to remove the burden from your hands completely.

This is not a one-time action. You may have to cast the same burden repeatedly, every time it tries to creep back onto your shoulders. But with each act of surrender, you will discover that God really does sustain you. His promise is sure: “He will never permit the righteous to be moved.” That means no storm can topple you, no weight can crush you, and no fear can undo you when you are resting in His care.

So today, throw your burden far from you. Picture yourself hurling it to the foot of the cross, where Jesus already bores its weight. Trust that He will hold you up, not just for today, but for every day that follows. You don’t have to crumble under the pressure, because the One who carried the cross will carry you.

May the Lord bless you and keep you, and may the Lord allow these words to help you renew your spirit.

Dr. Dimas Castillo