Joy In the Now
The start of a new year tends to lead to an optimistic vision of future plans. We often begin thinking to ourselves something along the lines of, “I know things are hard now, but in the next 3/6/9 months I’ll definitely be in a place where I’ll be able to accomplish (fill in the blank).”
Something that has slammed into my world with a pretty powerful punch is the dangerous habit of placing my hope for happiness in some future goal instead of making peace with my current set of circumstances exactly as they are. I make all sorts of plans, I have all kinds of dreams, I create a plethora of scenarios involving where I see my life headed. These things are not necessarily bad in and of themselves, but then actual life happens. A diagnosis is given, a job is lost, a savings account becomes depleted.
I tend to feel crushed, dropped to my knees, heartbroken because all of my eggs were in baskets that were never promised in the first place. I start to experience a sense of disorientation and anxiety about how to move forward when this new version of ‘forward’ no longer holds my prior expectations. The disappointment can become deflating and I’ve gone through this cycle so many times it’s as if I live in a dang washing machine. My hope is resting on the shifting sand of situations that come with no guarantee and then I feel overwhelming despair when the exciting “what if’s” become the disappointing “not now’s” or sometimes the devastating “not ever’s.”
As I’ve fought through so many major changes these past few years, I’ve learned a valuable lesson. I need to find joy in the “now”, right here in the moment I’m in no matter how flawed I perceive it to be. It may not be my version of perfect, but it holds an invaluable purpose. It may not be comfortable, but it has the power to grow me in ways I never knew possible. It may not be ideal in my eyes, but it is beneficial in the eyes of the Lord. For those reasons, I can praise Him for the present and find hope in some of the most seemingly hopeless places.
I don’t know where you’re currently at, friends, but it’s EXACTLY where you’re supposed to be. There’s joy there, it just may require a slightly different perspective to see it. Wherever you stand right now, hope can fill that space. You just need to allow yourself to accept it. Stop looking to “the next thing” to finally feel fulfilled. You are complete in Christ right where you are regardless of where you desire to be. Embrace the peace afforded to you in the very place you stand today.
“The heart of man plans his ways, but the Lord establishes his steps.”
Proverbs 19:6