The Present is Not Our Future

 Psalm 34:17-19  The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all.

            The famous question is, Why do bad things happen to good people? The answer is simply that bad things happen. God created a world that was perfect and without need of fine-tuning nor adjustments. “And God saw that it was good” (Gen. 1:4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 24, 31). Things changed the moment man took his eyes off of the Creator, and instead began looking to that which was created for his guidance. The world from that point would be forever marred, altered, changed and bad would exist. Perhaps the real problem comes when we are already in a weakened state and errantly perceive that others—people of the world, not people of Christian faith—seem to be better off in their circumstances than what is happening in our own lives.

Proverbs 24:19-20  Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of the wicked, for the evil man has no future hope, and the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out.

            Good things happen to both good and bad people. Bad things happen to both good and bad people. Good and bad things happen. The difference is that Christians have a future of hope and non-Christians do not. For the non-Christian; whatever happens in this life, be it good or bad, is all they will ever have. They have no hope of a glorious future. Christians belong to a God who deeply cares for his faithful ones. He strengthens us in our weaknesses. He comforts us when we are brokenhearted and crushed. He sees us through the darkest hours. And one day, he will welcome us to our eternal home in his soon-coming Kingdom.

Revelation 21:4  He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.

2 Peter 3:13-14 But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.

Gracious Heavenly Father,

            Forgive us when we lose site of the future you have planned for us. In our weakness or distress, keep our eyes fixed on you, the source of all comfort and strength, and the hope for all eternity.

            In Jesus’ name, Amen.

 

The devotional The Present is Not Our Future appeared first on Write From My Heart at writefrommyheartblog.blogspot.com 

email: Dotty Willmon, writefrommyheartblog@gmail.com