I remember meeting this young man years ago, while out on a school outreach; he was receptive when we approached him so we carried on with our message. After reading numerous passages from the Bible, we posed the question, “Do you want to give your life to Christ?”. He did not answer immediately, visibly thinking deeply about the question. When he finally replied, he said, “One day I will, but not today.” And despite our great efforts he could not be persuaded otherwise. I don’t know what happened to that young man because we were in a far-off region, but his response stuck with me.

When we were in school, the educational system always expected us to know what we wanted to be in the future. As early as primary school, we started singing songs about the wonderful future that education would surely bring.
“When I grow up, I want to become a doctor
I work very hard, I don’t relax
If I relax, everything will relax,”, went the lyrics of a popular song at my primary school.

Every parent desired to hear about our goals for the future. They wanted to hear us say we would be doctors, lawyers, engineers. Dreams changed over time when we entered secondary school and were exposed to more challenging topics and subjects. Our syllabus in biology and chemistry told us that not everyone could become a doctor. But we still managed to navigate and reimagine what else we could become.

I’ve been raised with such a strong system of looking forward and striving for a bright future that, even as an adult, I find myself talking about my future goals all the time and always imagining what a glorious future I will have. I comfort myself on bad days by telling myself, “I will be great one day. I’ll accomplish big things one day”.

When this thought most recently crossed my mind, instead of relishing in it, for the first time I had to ask myself, “What about today? What do I do?” It caused me to consider the number of things I have put off doing because I believed I would get around to them at some point in the future. Now I am forced to ask; when will that moment arrive, and why can’t those things be done right now? While it is true that certain tasks are limited to the future – owing to time and resource constraints, many tasks can be accomplished today.

The lyrics of a song by American gospel singer TobyMac say, “If you have to start somewhere, why not here? If you have to start sometime, why not now?” Those were, in my opinion, really profound words. And I realized I should pray to God to know what to do in the here and now while I wait for God to show me what my future self will hold. Give us this day our daily bread, says Matthew 6:11. Jesus instructed us to ask the Father for our today when we pray.

I shall preach the gospel one day. So why not preach it today, one could ask? I plan to study my bible cover to cover one day. I plan to write a book one day. Why not get going right now? I’ll launch my business eventually; I’ll apply for the job eventually. I’ll ask that girl out one day; I will join church ministry; I will do charity, I will read that book, I will go back to school. The list of things we push to the future are endless.

Matthew 6:34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. We have a lot of work to accomplish tomorrow, but we also have a lot to do today. Have you completed everything that needs to be done today? Above all, are you aware of what needs to be done today? Are you aware of the things you can achieve today?

The future always looks promising, like it holds all the answers and all the solutions. God has put somethings in the future and you have to wait on him for them. But he has also put some things in our today and we owe it to ourselves to know what they are and start working on them.

You do not need a new year to do a cover to cover sweep of your bible, you do not always need all the many qualifications and experience you think you need to apply for a job; you can do it today. You do not have to wait for church to announce a fasting period; you can start your own today. There are many things we are qualified to do today. All we need is the bravery to move forward.

“One day at a time sweet Jesus
That’s all I’m asking of You
Just give me the strength
To do everyday what I have to do
Yesterday’s gone, Sweet Jesus
And tomorrow may never be mine
Lord help me today, show me the way
One day at a time.”