Have you ever heard someone say, if I knew then what I know now, life would be different?

We even sometimes look back and say if only I had made better decisions and done things differently, my life would not be in such a bad predicament as it is now. We also try and convince ourselves that life would actually be better as we compare ours with others around us.

But then God reminds us that no matter how bad our life seemed then, or how dark the tunnel appeared to be then, there was light at the end of the tunnel. We are reminded of that light as we look into the eyes of a child that resulted from those dark days, bad times or tunnel-vision living.

Then, we soon retract what was said because we realize that if we had made a different decision back then, we would not have that child in our life that has brought us so much joy.

Have you ever come across people who, after you had the acquaintance of knowing them, would say, “I wish we knew each other years ago?” They would speak of how their life would be so much better if you were part of it. I believe that’s one thing we can’t know for sure, even after hindsight. Who knows?

Little did you both know that your paths had crossed. You were so close to one another that you could have touched one another, but it wasn’t time or wasn’t the season.

What I’m trying to bring to your attention is that we can’t predict our lives because they are already planned. In several books of the Bible, it is mentioned that God knew a person before they were born or actually knew them while they were in their mother’s womb. Even before their mother knew she was pregnant, God knew them. Now, that’s awesome.

If only we could plan our lives, we surely wouldn’t say on one day, OK this day will be perfect with nothing going wrong, and then on another day say I want some surprises or sadness that would make me miserable. No, that is not the way life works. Surely, no one plans to have mishaps in their lives.

Believe it or not, our lives have already been planned and laid out for us. Just to prove a point, have you ever had a déjà vu moment? This is the moment where you have a spiritual experience where you can say, “I’ve been here before.” It’s that moment when things are so familiar as if you were reliving a certain scene of your life. The déjà vu moment is where God let us in on the fact that our lives have already been planned. Through the déjà vu moment, he sometimes gives us a glimpse into the future and then let us lives it to prove that our lives are already planned. Who could do that but God?

You know it is said that hindsight is the best sight to see things clearer or in a different perspective. Yes, it’s true.

We can see after an action what we could have done differently, but in reality, it just doesn’t work that way. We cannot turn back the hands of time, nor can we reverse a day or an action.

Even though we want to look back over our lives or turn back the hands of time, we have got to take life for what it’s really worth. No matter how life has treated us or how we have treated life, we can still find some valuable episodes, as well as some worthless ones, in the same day.

Remember that from day one He has known us, and He has planned for us as a parent plans for their children. So although He is aware of whom we are, what lies around the corner for us — whether it’s our actions or the actions of others — He is in charge of the plan.

Our lives have already been planned and laid out, and we must just walk in it and rely on a God who has it in the bag. One thing about God, as the Bible tells us, is that he is an on-time God. Not your time, but His.

Beverly Gibson is a Ferriday resident.