Joan Boney ... apostle/prophet
More and more, I find myself saying, "If we are still here next year ..." when I speak of what someone is planning for next year.
I have no plans for future (other than eye doctor appointment and tooth cleaning appointment). If we are still on the earth, I will probably keep those appointments.
Everything for me is "If we are still here on this earth."
James 4 ... 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: 14Whereas 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. 15For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. 16But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.
Jesus taught: No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
25Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 26Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 28And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Peter explained: But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
11Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, 12Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? 13Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. 14Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless. 15And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation;
So if you do have plans for future, consider those plans in light of the above scripture.
I have just finished reading a secular book which is set in Singapore in 1941. The head of a rubber corporation is planning for the anniversary year of the company which will take place in 1942. He is consumed with deciding what will be in the parade, and who will ride on each float, and getting the floats built. All this is going on as the Japanese are moving down the mainland enroute to Singapore. Even as the bombs are falling this man is building floats. He ends up escaping by boat and pieces of his floats are seen from time to time floating about in the bay.
All the worry and fretting over future is like that. Therefore the Bible warns us not to go that way.
And when Jesus returns, we know the powers of heaven will be shaken. When the sky goes dark, or if it is night and we hear a great noise (no one will miss this event), then we are told to look up for our redemption draweth nigh. Lk. 21:28
In meantime we are told to take no thought for tomorrow.
And if we do think of tomorrow, we say, "If the Lord wills ..." or maybe "If I'm still on the earth ..." All other words are boasting and evil says James.