You are planning for your coming life-transition around dates, timetables and available resources. These are wise things to consider, but they should not be your first consideration.  The psalmist said, “Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your hearts desire.” Delight and desire should be the starting point of your transition planning. As you delight in God, He will birth new desires in your heart.

You are missing two important elements  in your transition planning – beauty and wonder. These two elements will create the environment from which delight and desire are birthed.  Imagine a new parent looking into the eyes of their newborn child.  A parent experiences wonder when they behold the God-created beauty of the little person they now hold in their arms.

God is looking into your eyes and He sees beauty expressed in your life because He created you in His image. He also sees the wonder you will discover as you live out the hope-filled future He has planned for you.  He wants to draw you into His experience of that same beauty and wonder.  Make no plans until you actually see this beauty and experience this wonder.  From the supernatural environment of beauty and wonder will flow the delight and desire that will help you craft a future that looks like the one God has in mind when He looks into your eyes.