In our first reading today, James challenges us to guard against a common human tendency—the desire for total control:

“Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we shall go into such and such a town, spend a year there doing business, and make a profit’—you have no idea what your life will be like tomorrow. You are a puff of smoke that appears briefly and then disappears. Instead you should say, ‘If the Lord wills it, we shall live to do this or that’” (James 4:13-15). 

This isn’t to say that planning is unimportant, but we must guard against depending on our own wills, thinking we know what’s going to happen and can control our destinies. Rather, we are called to demonstrate prudence measured by humility, making plans but doing so with a certain level of detachment from our own expectations. May our words be, “If the Lord wills it, we shall live to do this or that.”

We must remember that God is ultimately the one in charge. Our path to recovery from addictions, compulsions, and unhealthy attachments is based on our submission to the Almighty (we are reminded of this truth by Steps 2, 3, and 11). In other words, we are called to work our recovery by doing what we can but ultimately with a spirit of trust and humility. We do not save ourselves from addiction, compulsions, and unhealthy attachments—God does according to His will. Therefore, we can maintain our recovery only if we continue to submit to the will of God in all things.

Reflection Questions

• Regardless of how much time in continuous recovery you have under your belt, do you still regularly submit all your plans to the will of God?
• How have you become complacent or even arrogant in your sense of self-sufficiency? What can you do today to reclaim a more humble disposition?

Daily Mass Readings

First Reading: James 4:13-17
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 49:2-3, 6-7, 8-10, 11
Gospel: Mark 9:38-40

Reflection by Kevin S.