{"id":344,"date":"2015-10-20T07:21:00","date_gmt":"2015-10-20T07:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/?p=344"},"modified":"2022-02-07T03:11:32","modified_gmt":"2022-02-07T03:11:32","slug":"there-is-no-back-up-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/there-is-no-back-up-plan\/","title":{"rendered":"There is No Back-up Plan"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Our son applied to a college. That\u2019s right, just one. After extensive research across the globe considering vastly different schools and programs from California to Florida, America to Australia, only one stood out to him. So, he invested significant time in completing an extensive application, audition (including the writing and performing of at least three original songs), and interview process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In my sharing of his journey with others, people often ask, \u201cWhere else has he applied?\u201d or, even more directly, \u201cWhat\u2019s his backup plan?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An engineer by training and early career, I am not only a big fan of redundancy, I typically design for it. All of the projects I worked on as an engineer included a series of redundancies built into the primary designs, as well outright backup plans for construction, use, and in case of possible failure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have seen too many things collapse, too many surprises upset very thorough and well-intentioned plans, and too many \u201csure things\u201d turn into broken and shattered dreams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most of my forethoughts of actions and adventures \u2013 sometimes moments, but often days, weeks, even years and decades in the works \u2013 include a backup plan. I may not write every plan out, or broadcast my dispositions, but my mind rehearses options and scenarios keyed to potential triggers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, I ponder the wisdom of anyone proceeding with anything with no backup plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, in my pondering, I am struck by the reality that in the biggest and most important things in my life \u2013 specifically my life and my everlasting soul \u2013 I have no backup plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have cast my lot \u2013 all that I have, all that I am, and all that I ever hope to be, both now and forevermore \u2013 with Jesus Christ, and with Jesus Christ alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am trusting that He is the Way, the truth, and the life, and apart from Him, there is no other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In life and in death, if the Jewish and Christian scriptural promises are not true, I have no supplementary options on the table, or waiting for me out back, or buried or locked away somewhere that I can access in an emergency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have no additional lifelines or phone-a-friends, no other \u201cGet out of Hell Free\u201d cards, no magic mirrors, escape portals, reset buttons, or time machines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I don\u2019t have a list of other religions to run to if Christianity doesn\u2019t work out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am not secretly banking on an underlying godless reality of meaninglessness temporal existence and random chance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am not presuming an impersonal fundamental materiality of eternal oneness and unity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am not supposing a rationally enlightened allegiance to a future nothingness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am not expecting an anonymous continuance or terminus devoid of justice, righteous punishments, and gracious rewards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am not casting my hopes in prevailing victoriously over and through a maze of emotional, intellectual, moral, physical, and political battles in a worldly survival of the fittest contest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am not trusting my future hopes in a promising pastor, politician, priest, or professional; a particular program, prosperous possessions, or perceived power; or my ability to produce plentiful points on the scoreboard of life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am not hoping to one day brilliantly figure everything out and have all my intelligent (and foolish) questions answered so I can then \u2013 knowing all things there are to be known \u2013 make a completely informed and rational decision that requires absolutely zero faith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No, I only have one plan \u2013 trust in Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is no backup plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Published in Meat and Potatoes for the Soul 2<\/em>, \u00a9 2015 by K. Lynn Lewis.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Our son applied to a college. That\u2019s right, just one. After extensive research across the globe considering vastly different schools and programs from California to Florida, America to Australia, only one stood out to him. So, he invested significant time in completing an extensive application, audition (including the writing and performing of at least three…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":345,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32,4],"tags":[12,10,8,11],"class_list":["post-344","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-maybles","category-non-fiction","tag-christianity","tag-faith","tag-jesus","tag-maybles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=344"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":346,"href":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344\/revisions\/346"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/345"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=344"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=344"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klynnlewis.com\/maybles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=344"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}