7 Sins That May Hinder God's Plan for You in Your RetirementSample

6. FEAR hinders God’s Plan for Your Retirement

Perhaps none of the sins outlined so far are any issue for you. You are actively seeking God’s will for you in your retirement and drawing close to God in these years given to you. All is good.

Well almost…

You see, despite doing all the right things, maybe you’re trying pretty hard not to hear God.

Let me give an example to show you what I mean by that….

When we were younger, my wife and I wrestled with what God wanted us to do in life. After all, there was a big world ahead of us, and God could surely equip us for anything.

And, although we had good intentions and really wanted to live our lives in accordance with God’s plan, we were a little afraid that God might point us in a direction that maybe we really didn’t want to go. After all, we were not quite ready to pick up and move to Africa and live in a mud hut among the unreached natives.

So, while we did actively pray and seek God’s will, we kind of confined it to things that we thought might be suitable. The term “fear God” took on a new meaning for us, at least when it concerned hearing from Him on our life’s plan.

How did it turn out for us? Well, God never sent us to Africa to go live in a mud hut with our kids. Instead, He guided our lives across jobs in multiple countries, preparing us for His plan in our “retirement” days.

And, can you believe it? Now we are actually working in Africa to help create jobs for those who most need it! Crazy, right?

The point of my example is that we often have an underlying FEAR that God might ask us to do something so far out of our comfort zone, or so far from what we are expecting, that we would rather not hear from Him on that particular topic.

But actually, it's just as David penned in that most famous psalm of all – God will be with us, we have no reason to FEAR:

Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.. – Psalm 23:4

As you look for God’s plan for your retirement, it may be different than what you think it should be. It may also be different than what the world or even your fellow Christians think, but remember that it is God’s plan for YOU, not a plan for them, or their plan for you.

Commit this verse to memory, then dig deep to find God’s plan for you:

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. – Romans 12:2

FEAR NOT is what the angel told Zechariah when he was already very old and about to become the father of John the Baptist (ref. Luke 1:7).

God’s message to you today is the same: FEAR NOT.