D.V.

 May 2, 2022

“Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.” —James 4:13, 15-16 

Often the old-time Bible commentators would pen a preface to their work, concluding with the letters “D.V.” Why were these two letters which slip by most modern readers so important as to be included almost as a post-script? Because those old authors understood something we too often forget. These letters stand for “Deo Volente,” “God Willing.” We moderns often take life for granted, assuming we will be able to fulfill tomorrow the plans we make today. We have become accustomed to being in control of our lives, and feel cheated if anything interrupts the carefully mapped-out future we have planned.

It all works pretty well until we hit a bump in the road, or even worse, find a big detour sign blocking our way. I don’t know too many people who haven’t had a few of those detours blocking the road they were on. A young woman thinks he is about to propose, but instead he breaks up with her. After a lifetime of hard work and saving, he gets a report from the doctor that sends their retirement travel plans up in smoke. A drunk driver ends the dreams of a young woman who just graduated from medical school.

At times like this, we are tempted to shake our fist at God; after all, we were doing our best to serve him. How could he do this to us?

James knew how fragile life can be. The early Church spread primarily among the poor of the day; the slaves, the sick, those society cast off. There was no safety net, no retirement plans, no health insurance. But the bottom rung of society weren’t the only ones to believe. Earlier in his letter, James spoke to those who had plenty of this world’s resources, chiding them for their condescending attitudes towards those less fortunate (James 2:1-9). 

I don’t believe we realize how much we take for granted our regular income, our jobs, our health, our homes, our security. Mother Theresa said it well: “You don’t know Jesus is all you need till Jesus is all you have.” I’ve never been in so destitute that Jesus is all I have. I may think I’ve put my complete trust in him, but have I?

I don’t think I’ve been boasting lately, but plans we’ve made have come to a screeching halt. Our son’s brain tumors have changed our daily routine. This morning, Linda tested positive, so the plans we had made to help Nate and Deb have been put on hold. To help out our other kids, we had planned to drive various grandchildren to their sports events and doctors appointments this week. Scratch that!

These interruptions are pretty minor; after all, we aren’t being targeted by Russian artillery or missiles, haven’t had our home torn apart by a tornado, and aren’t awakened in the night by gunfire outside our door. Nonetheless, we are not guaranteed tomorrow, so tonight I make plans, but always in mind are those two letters: “D.V.”