Facing the School Year (Or Whatever Life has for You)

For the last few weeks I've been noticing summer/school countdowns and first-day-of-school pics galore on social media. My schools started classes this last Wednesday, and I am psyched! People keep asking, "how were the first few days of classes?" And let me tell you, they have gone really well...once we got past all the groaning...oh yeah, and the kids were groaning too. Seriously though, I get excited when school starts because these students are what I live for. I certainly need a break from teaching by the time we get to summer, but I really miss my kids during those months. So by the time we reach the first day of school I am way too excited for my students to handle. They are still in the process of mourning the end of summer. I get that. 
This could be a post about "New Beginnings," but it's not. As I have begun this new school year (which is really the only kind of year that has meant anything to me, and I don't understand why we are still following that calendar Gregory gave us) I've been thinking a lot about the purpose of the year. If you are going to start something, there should be a reason. There may be times in your life when you need to start small things--like hobbies--just for the sake of doing something with your time, but most things you begin should have meaning in their future. No one starts school just to collect thirteen or fourteen first-day-of-school pictures. No one starts a job for the sake of saying they showed up on their first day of work (or at least no one should start a job for that reason). No one--or should I sadly say "very few"--gets married just for the sake of having a wedding. No one climbs Mt. Everest just so they can hang out at the base camp. I want to start this year of school with a purpose; a goal to be achieved; a challenge to overcome.
The scary thing about starting with a purpose, however, is that you then start looking into the future--an unknown realm of mystery, tragedy, suspense, and horror...okay I'll stop listing movie genres. If there is a goal, a purpose, or a challenge, that means you are looking down the line to something that must be accomplished over some period of time. These are very vague terms so please allow me to apply a concrete parallel. To begin a school year with purpose means that you have just set a goal that is to be accomplished over the period of--and no less than--nine months. (Now that I put it in those terms I have that much more respect for mothers. God bless you all.) A goal that big seems near impossible when viewed from the skewed perspective of today. It's no wonder the kids are bemoaning the end of summer. They are viewing the next nine months from the singular moment of today. That is both terrifying and demoralizing. 
How is a person supposed to maintain his sanity with so many syllabi hanging over his head; not to mention all the social, athletic, and community events on the calendar. Add to that the unknown sick days, appointments, family vacations, and all the work that has to be done at home and...I'm so overwhelmed by the thought of it that I don't even know how to finish that sentence. 
That's why I have to stop myself at times and remember a few key things:
1) You don't finish a marathon by believing you have what it takes to make it to the end. You finish by believing you have what it takes to take one more step. (Maybe there are some crazy people out there who finish marathons an entire marathon at a time. Kudos to you. I would have to push forward one step at a time.)
I can remember numerous times in college when I would look at my calendar of assignments, my calendar of events, and my work schedule (which was actually the same as the calendar of events in my case) and I would be overwhelmed by how much needed to be accomplished in the short time I had. The only thing I could do was pray that God would help me to do the best that I could, and then dig in my heals to do it. I prioritized my assignments and used my time as best I could without burning myself out (seriously, I made it all the way through college without a single all-nighter). 
You can't do everything today that needs to be done in a year. All you can do is what needs to be done today. Jesus tells us, "do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own" (Matt. 6:34). So seek the source of all life, energy, and wisdom, and take the next step; just the next one.
2) While life should be lived with purpose, God reserves the right to have alternate purposes for you. 
To use the same example from college, all that work laid out in front of me held behind it the looming threat of failing courses, losing scholarships, and ultimately flunking out of school. My great consolation was in knowing that I was where God wanted me to be, and doing what God wanted me to do. And even in the midst of all the studies and events, I tried (not always perfectly) to make sure that I was still pursuing my relationship with him. With those things in mind I knew that as long as I was doing my best in his strength, things would turn out the way that he wanted. Of course, I also kept in mind that it was a perfectly viable possibility that what God would want at some point could be that I flunk out of college (he has done crazier things). I wasn't going to work toward that end. But I also wasn't going to worry myself to death over something that--should it still happen even after doing everything I could to succeed--could still be God's plan for my life. 
Of course that possibility never became reality, but it's amazing how much worry you lose when you consider the "worst case" scenario and realize that--though unpleasant--it would still be okay as long as you still have God with you. Which brings me to my final reminder.
3) God is always there. And God always cares. 
Though his plan may be different, he still understands our dreams and ambitions better than anyone else. He knows how much they mean to us, and he knows how hard it can be to let them go. He also knows how daunting our goals can be to pursue. He knows just what we need to accomplish the task, and he can give it to us. There is one catch. He only ever promises to give us what we need for today (if we ask). Sure, there are plenty of ways in which he has provided more than we need for the day, but they are not guaranteed. To help us understand this mindset Jesus told his disciples to pray not for an abundance that would firmly establish them until their dying day, but only for the daily bread. God knows that one day's bread isn't enough to accomplish all that he has planned for your life. But he also knows that one day's bread is all that you need right now to accomplish what he has planned for your life today. 
He also knows that when we have "everything we need" we do two things: want more, and forget about him. When the Israelites were wandering in the dessert, God gave them everything they needed when they needed it. He even kept their clothes and shoes from wearing out...for FORTY YEARS! What did they do? Complain for God to provide them with the latest fashions and some new Nikes...or maybe it was food. Oh yeah, they complained for some more food.  They forgot everything he had done for them and focused on how much more they could have. It only got uglier from there. But God never abandoned them. Not really.
With these three reminders in place, as I look at all that I hope to accomplish in this most purposeful year before me I don't have to panic. No, God hasn't already provided everything that I need to make this year a success. But that's okay because he has provided everything I need to make today a success. More than that, he has provided himself. He has provided his Son to give me  life and guarantee my future. And he has provided his constant, caring presence in my life. And he is sufficient in all things. 
Here's to a new year. May God be glorified!