Timelines

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens. - Ecclesiastes 3:1

Earlier this year, I was having a conversation with my roommate Lauren. We were talking about our birthdays coming up in the next few months where we would both be turning 27. Between Lauren having recently found a handful of gray hairs on her head and my realization that anti-wrinkle eye cream was now a necessary part of my skincare routine, you could say we were both a little less than enthused about creeping up on the big 3-0. 

As we were talking about approaching the next decade of our lives, I said, "Lauren, if I'm being really honest, if I'm not married by the time I'm 30, I don't think I'm going to handle it too well. I just never thought I would get to 30 and still be single.” 

We both let that phrase hang in the air for a minute, but then something hit me. "Actually," I said, "I never thought I would get to 26 and still be single either, and I love how my life has turned out."

That moment will forever be etched in my mind. For so long I couldn't imagine getting to the point where I had lived through three decades and had still not said "I do." But ever since I had that conversation with Lauren, my entire outlook has changed. When I think about it, nothing about my life over the past eight years has turned out like I thought it would, and yet I've had an amazing life so far. I've seen God do an amazing work in me as He's guided me to unexpected opportunities, exciting experiences, and life-giving relationships.

Far too often we assign timelines to our lives, telling ourselves that if we don’t graduate on time, if we aren’t married by a certain age, if we don’t have kids by a certain point, or if we don’t accomplish our ten year plan, then somehow we’ve failed. But let’s not forget that when God dreamt up His plan for our lives, He wasn’t worried about time.

Even though our culture likes to put timelines and deadlines on everything, that doesn’t mean that’s the way God works too. In fact, I can tell you from personal experience that the majority of events and experiences that have happened in my life so far have taken place at a different time than most people would expect. That doesn’t mean I’m a failure. It doesn’t mean I’m doing something wrong. It just means that God’s plan and my timeline don’t always match.

So what if I don't have a husband on my 30th birthday? And so what if you don't either? Either way we're going to be okay. And either way, God can and will still do an incredible work in us as He guides us towards the next chapter in our lives, whatever that chapter may entail.