This is the day…

If you are like me, you always have a mental list of things that you are looking forward to—the weekend, a special time out with your husband, your next family vacation, a shopping trip to spend birthday money, bedtime (zzz!J). Looking ahead can be fun; it can inspire a sense of anticipation and excitement that helps lighten the tougher times we experience.

I was recently reminded of another kind of “looking ahead” that can subtly seep into the cracks and corners of my life and rob me of joy and contentment. Does this sound familiar?

“Things will be better when…” “Everything will be OK when…” (Fill in the blank!).

It is the kind of waiting that says, “I will have peace and contentment when this particular thing in my life changes.” I have done this in so many ways. When my mother was living with us in her final years, I filled in the blank with ‘things will be better when…’ kinds of thoughts. But there are subtler ways this kind of thinking can creep into my everyday living. What about “…when my husband changes in this area,” or, “…when this particular child learns to obey.” We all have something we can put in that blank. But to live this way is to somehow believe that God’s real purposes for my life will begin at some future point that I must define for him.

Psalm 100:8 says, “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.” The psalmist roots his contentment and joy in the fact that God is sovereign over his days—all of them—not just the ones in the future, but over THIS day. And this is a battle that is won or lost by where I chose to focus my attention. Do I dwell on everything that seems wrong with my life and then long for the day when my circumstances will change, OR do I fix my eyes the One who made all of my days and is able to give me grace for this day? In other words, I must anchor my hope for this day in God and not my circumstances. His Word is filled with promises that have helped me do this; here are just a few: Ephesians 2:10, 2 Cor 4:17, Ps 46:1, Ps 139:3 & 16, They help me walk in assurance that the difficulties of this day are not interruptions in God’s gracious plan for my life, but a part of his equipping me to rejoice in his presence and activity in my life every day. If we walk this way on this day, nothing can rob us of our joy and contentment in Him!