Facing the Future

Psalm 28:7
"The Lord is my strength and my shield, my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped, therefore my heart greatly rejoices and with my song I will praise Him."

This morning I was reading from Pastor Jeremiah's A Bend In The Road.
He says, "When anxiety for the future built up-and it did time and again-David faced it with the testimony of the past. What a terrible danger it is to become trapped in the claustrophobia of the present during a crisis. That's our first impulse. The clear and present danger is so huge, so imposing, that it blocks our view behind us and ahead of us. We desperately need perspective. We can't change the future until it arrives, but we can gain wisdom from the past. It should hold for us an absolute conviction on the question of who God is and what He's done for us previously."

I don't know what the future holds. I don't know what treatments I will need. The only sure thing I know is God has always been faithful to me in the past and His character does not change. Each day I wake up I know His steadfast love never ceases and His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning. Great is His faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22)

In Habbakuk 3 you can read about a dire situation Habbakuk found himself in. Jeremiah says, "Habbakuk you see, made a choice. His country was in turmoil, his God had no answers that made sense. When there was no explanation for things that he could wrap his mind around, the prophet said, "I do have one option. I can praise God. The world around me may be in turmoil, yet though all of it falls apart, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation." That same choice faces you. You can demand answers, neatly gift-wrapped. You can insist that God quickly resolves every trail and injustice in your life. You can hold out for the world, your life within it, to become suddenly fair and rational, though they've never been so in the first place. Or you can choose to lift up your eyes to the heavens, pour out your tears and grief and anger, and say in the very midst of them, "God, I have no clue what this turmoil is all about or where it is leading, but this is my resolution: I will put my trust in You, and I will praise You with all of my heart unconditionally!" The same God who has been there in the past is the God who is going to be there for you in the future. He will bring resolution in His own time, according to His own purposes. We become preoccupied with our circumstances, God is preoccupied with our character. He will allow the tough times for the higher good of our character until He is finished with the great work that is invisible to our earthly eyes."

My prayer for you and I is that each day we will get up and reflect on God's faithfulness. He has what we need to get through this day and each that is to come. May you embrace your day with joy and unconditional praise. Don't fear the future. He holds it in His hands. He is molding and shaping your character. Look for the ministry opportunities He will bring your way. Find the purpose in the pain. It's there. Like David, I choose to say, "I will sing to the Lord, for He has been good to me." Psalm 13:6