Hope

Pre-count

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If you have ever been on a field trip with children or have gone to camp, you know the ritual that happens prior to the bus departing. Whoever is in charge counts the number of young people that are going on the drive. The goal is that by counting the kids beforehand you are better prepared for the eventual trip back home. You can make sure that all the kids who went with you also return..

We have our own ways of preparing for the future. One way that we rarely consider is to engage in our own form of the pre-count. In Philippians 3:7-8 Paul says:

I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.

Did you notice what Paul considered a loss?

Everything.

The things he had gained through his time as a leader in the Jewish religious community – his reputation, his wealth, his prominence  – all of that he considered a loss. But everything doesn’t just include things in the past – it includes everything in the future too. He knew that whatever benefits or blessings he might experience in the days ahead wouldn’t compare to what he already obtained – knowing His Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

In a similar way, we can not only count everything in our past a loss compared to Jesus, but we can know that what this world holds for us in the future is as well. This means that His children need not worry about what the future has in store;  good or bad it is a “loss” compared to what we already have.

The purpose of the bus ride pre-count is to better prepare for the future.  When we do this in our own lives, when we know that what God has already provided, a relationship with Him through the death and resurrection of His Son, is of more value than anything that has already happened or that will happened, we too are better prepared for what the days ahead may hold.

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Being Content

The Fight of the Big A’s

If you have been a Christian for any length of time, you soon learn that has a believer, you aren’t supposed to be worrying. Worrying is a pronouncement of a lack of faith – if you believe that God is sovereign and that He is working everything out for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Ro. 8:28), than worrying is simply nonsense. It’s when we don’t truly believe this, when our confidence in this truth is belied by feelings of uncertainty over things we can’t control, that worrying takes place.

However, what can complicate this matter is that there are things in life that we legitimately look forward to, and sometimes there is a fine line between anxiety and anticipation. As we gaze forward to the path that the Lord seems to be leading us on, we are tempted to start being anxious about whether the journey will lead to the desired destination. As God gives us good gifts, we worry about whether the gifts will last. Something that starts as blessing can be used by our enemy to shake our confidence in our loving Father.

So how do we know when the scale has been tipped? How do we know when anticipation has been replaced by anxiety? Here are three ways:

1) Anxiety focuses on what happens; Anticipation focuses on Who does the work. – When we’re anxious we are looking at “what’s next?”  Our constant focus is on what’s going to happen to us. Anticipation looks to the God who is working on behalf of His children. Our eyes are focused upward, not on the world that’s around us. When we were eagerly anticipating what God has in store, our trust is in Him. Therefore the question isn’t “what’s next?” but “What is God going to do next?” with a confidence that regardless of the response, He is trustworthy and true.

2) Anxiety is concerned with the details; Anticipation is concerned with the design – When I’m anxious over something, I’m concerned with the details of what will occur – how will things work out, who will be affected, what will life be like afterwards? When I’m living in anticipation of God’s work, my concern is for how what happens conforms to God’s design for my life – to honor and bring glory to Him.  Living with confidence that God’s people will see His goodness in the land of the living, I can eagerly anticipate how He will bring this about in my own life, and the lives of His other children.

3) Anxiety looks for control; Anticipation looks to give praise – When I’m worrying about a situation it’s because I want to have control over things that I can’t. I want to dictate the future and not let the course of outcomes be placed in God’s hand. Anticipation, however, looks forward knowing that whatever happens, God desires that I use the circumstance to bring Him glory. When I live in anticipation of what God is going to do, I also live in anticipation of the future opportunities to praise Him for the work that He has and will continue do.

It can be hard to look forward without being anxious, but the Christian can look forward with anticipation because we have confidence in the One who is doing the work, we know the purpose of His design, and we know that regardless of what happens, we will have cause to give Him praise. Ultimately, we also know that whatever happens on this Earth, the future of His children is secure, and therefore there was never any reason for anxiety anyway.

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