looking to the future

You always hear the saying, "The future is bright!" In fact, what was that song in the 80's "Future's so bright I gotta wear shades..." (thanks to Timbuk Three) Okay... really cheesy, but the fact is that when you hear people talk about the future with one another it is almost always in a positive light. Maybe that is a good thing, but is it really true? More often than not, in my experience, the future can best be described as... well... scary. Even with the best prospects before us, the future is uncertain, and so scary. But there is a hope, and that is our Father God, and our relationship to him through Jesus Christ.

I remember when I was a kid I would have terrible anxiety attacks... I mean really bad ones. There would be times where I would not sleep for literally days... as a THIRD GRADER! But then one day, I began to realize something; no amount of worrying, or stressing, or not sleeping was going to change things, and really what is the worse thing that can happen! Back then the worse thing that could happen was I would get in trouble with my parents or at school, or something like that, but was that something I couldn't survive?

These days worries can be bigger, consequences more severe, but that is why a relationship to something immovable is so vital. Jesus said, "Cast all your cares upon me and I will give you rest." He also challenges us to look at the fields and see how the Father cares for the birds and the flowers, and to ask will God not care for his children all the more. That doesn't mean there will not be difficulty, but it does mean that, quite literally, our future is bright, and we have nothing to fear in our Father's arms.

I may not always feel like that is the case. But sometimes I need my head to inform my heart that feelings can be deceiving, but the promises of God are not.