Cold Wind
A strange thing happened to me the other day. I stepped out of my car and I got cold.
I’m one of those people who loves the heat of summer. And that brief burst of chill reminded me of something that I’m not particularly excited about: things are changing. The weather is changing, as it does every year, but even more than that, we are changing.
Our lives are constantly changing and so are we. Summer will come again. But the summer that just ended will never come again. The sun will rise again. But this morning’s sunrise will never be repeated. Knowing that raises two questions in my mind. The first is about where we’re going and the second is about where we are.
Regarding where we’re going: All of us (if we’re being honest) have to admit that we don’t know what the remainder of fall will bring. We don’t know with certainty what joys and tragedies will come into our lives even tomorrow, let alone months and years from now. We face a future in which much is unknown, and that can be hard to deal with.
But for me, my experience with the future does not exist independently of the present. To the contrary, my experience and expectation of the future is inherently tied up in the second question, the question about where we are today. Knowing that today will never repeated and that tomorrow is unknown reminds me that there is a lot riding on today. We don’t get a do-over, and how we live today will play a large part in shaping our tomorrows.
So here is the choice that I make that brings me peace for today and for the future: I choose to live my life eternally.
In my better moments at least, I choose to remember that I am small and my days are numbered, and that God is big and He is forever. It may seem odd, but that gives me great hope. I trust God to give me a glorious life forever through Jesus, and to give me a life that matters every day as I serve Him.
I’m still not looking forward to winter, and a few other things, but I am confident that in all things God has good plans for me if I’ll just trust Him and hang on.
So how about you? As your life marches steadily forward into the unknown, who or what are you going to trust in and hang on to?
Everybody is trusting in something. Some people trust in something that seems big and uncontrollable, like the economy or the weather. Other people prefer to trust in something that seems just the right size and very controllable, like themselves. But whatever you choose to trust in today, I can promise you this:
If it's not God, it’s going to let you down.
So let's skip that step, shall we?
Join me in trusting in Jesus. He is the biggest thing ever, and you can't control Him, but He controls everything. Trust Him for today. Trust Him for tomorrow. Trust Him when things change and trust Him when they don't.