Thou Shalt Not Worship Thy Yahoo! Calendar

I held out for a long time using my leather-bound Franklin planner to keep track of our family's calendar. As we've already discussed, I am not an early adapter when it comes to technology. But my attachment to paper became increasingly troublesome because my husband couldn't see what the kids and I had going on unless we sat down together for a calendar meeting. And in our house, chances for such a civilized activity are few and far between. So one day, I decided to experiment with the calendar feature on our Yahoo! account. I entered a few recurring activities and watched them autofill through every week. Instead of having to write "ballet" and "horseback riding" by hand on little squares for every week in my planner, I could set those up to repeat automatically. Then I started adding one-time events, family birthdays set to auto-fill every year, vacations and appointments, all color-coded to each family member. With the speed and convenience evident, I was hooked. I even have a color code for supper menus. It's addictive.

Now I am greeted each morning by a rainbow of activities and commitments, events and appointments. I can see at a glance what each person has going on that day and what's coming up later in the week. I even have a handy place to enter those random events, like when your cousin tells you she is getting married 14 months down the road and you'd better save the date but you're afraid you will forget if you just write it on the back of a gas receipt. Now I can choose "Add event," enter the details, and the date is officially saved.

This handy electronic system gives me a feeling of calm and peace, an organized sense of success as the family manager and the illusion of control. But there's the problem. Thinking I am in control of my life or anyone else's is dangerous. I believe our loving Lord is all for making good use of your time and planning your activities. But I have to fight to keep my calendar from becoming an idol in my life and not forget who is really in charge. I should be looking heavenward for the calm and peace I am seeking. Besides, sometimes my calendar is wrong. I forget to enter an activity and schedule something else at the same time. Or someone gets sick and the day's plans go out the window. When life happens while I am making other plans, I am reminded that I should be saying each day, "Lord willing, this is what I plan to do." Then be ready for whatever comes my way, even if it is not on my calendar.

I love my Yahoo! Calendar and its organizational capabilities, but it does not love me back. I shalt try not to worship it.

In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.
Proverbs 16:9