Your Future Looking Back

Tomorrow.  The future.  What do those words make you feel?  How far ahead are you willing to ponder?

Sometimes we are faced with a future that is uncertain.  We don't know what is to come.  We yearn to take just a peak into the future.  And at the same time we fear to do so.  Perhaps in truth we as human beings would never learn to appreciate all the beautiful moments we have today if we knew what every tomorrow would bring.  There is a mystery and wonder in not knowing.

Only a few days before he died, Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock) posted his final Twitter message.  It said the following:  

" A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory..."

God knows that our lives are short and that the days of our lives arrive and disappear like vapor.  Why do some of us cling so tightly to the past when life itself propels us forward?  

" You do not know what will happen tomorrow.  What is your life?  

You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."

~ James 4:14

All the most beautiful experiences, all the most breath-taking moments we may ever know are only a fraction, one iota, of the beauty waiting for us in heaven.  The Bible says that no human being has ever even imagined the wonders and hope and love that God has waiting to give everyone who accepts Jesus Christ as their personal savior.

Meanwhile, though, we must live our lives today.  And sometimes that is not an easy thing to do.  We suffer in living.  The whole world groans for its redemption.  And even so it is possible to rise above the pain and the hurt.  It is possible to ride the crests of sorrow and loneliness.  We don't have to give in.

I am learning that whenever I hand over my expectations to the Lord everything works out. Sometimes that means that my expectations have changed to better mirror what He desires of my life.  Sometimes it means that I have let go of what I want.  And many times God surprises me by revealing that He had been making them so much better and bigger and brighter than I ever hoped for.

I am learning to let go, take a deep breath, and step forward into my tomorrows.  I used to be so afraid of this when I was younger.  In my heart I used to cling to everything and everyone in my past.  I just couldn't imagine living without them.  

Who am I without my past?  What hope is there in a tomorrow where my loved ones are not with me?

What is the point in living today if my future looks bleak?

These are questions many people ask.  And these questions plague the rich and the poor, the famous and the obscure.  Deep down we are all the same, really.  We want to know that everything will be better tomorrow. We want to believe that someone trusting and loving will be in our  future to take care of us.  We need to know that who we are as a person is never forgotten.

These things are entirely human and good and true.  I might even go so far as to say that they are divine.  And I say this because there is a part of us that is eternal.  We were created to live forever.  But not as we are today.

"He remembered that they were but flesh, 

a passing breeze that does not return."

~ Psalm 78:39

A single thread cannot depict an entire pattern.  It must be woven under, over, and along side countless others.  It must be led by the weaver who alone knows the final design.

Never be afraid to step into your future no matter how dark your today may be.  Learn to let go of your yesterday's so that you are free to accept the beautiful moments you have right now.

God is always with you and He has promised to always be your future.

" ... and your life is hidden away with Christ in God. When Christ, who is

our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory..."

~ Colossians 3: 3-4

Photo:  "Alice" by Elena Kalis