A God-Directed and Exciting Future
As a young woman, Gertrude (or "Biddy") Chambers was beginning to find her way in life. At one point she had an opportunity that excited her, and the author of this book Mrs Oswald Chambers writes that she had "every expectation of a God-directed and exciting future".
What a great sentence! This was before she had even become involved with Oswald. It was not a ministry in a church or evangelistic sense, that she was excited about. She was simply excited that her God was directing her along the way.
Expecting God's Direction
What do you think of, when you consider the future? Do you have every expectation that the future ahead of you will be exciting and God-directed?
Of course, it will only be God-directed if you follow God. If you seek His will, walk in His ways, and live in relationship with Him and His people. It will only be God-directed if you yield to His directing!
Men are famously bad at taking directions. We want to figure things out ourselves - so instead of reading instructions, we'll often just try figure out how to assemble something; or instead of using a GPS, we'll try to find our way to a destination without help. I wonder if we do the same, spiritually? We just press on without consulting God's manual, without even looking for a map marked out in front of us.
The Excitement of Walking With God
But if you do seek God's ways, an exciting future lies ahead. Whether you are young and starting a career, or close to death and awaiting a new chapter with God in another dimension - there is excitement if your future is with God! Without God, there is limited excitement. Without Him there might be some excitement, sure, but it is not lasting excitement! It is temporary and will ultimately come to nothing.
In fact in Eugene Peterson's paraphrase of the Bible, The Message, he uses some interesting wording for 2 Corinthians 3, where Paul is talking about the old and new covenant. He writes: "If the Government of Condemnation was impressive, how about this Government of Affirmation? Bright as that old government was, it would look downright dull alongside this new one. If that makeshift arrangement impressed us, how much more this brightly shining government installed for eternity? With that kind of hope to excite us, nothing holds us back." (2 Corinthians 3:9-12 MESSAGE)
Are you excited, at the hope of living in the New Covenant, with your faith in Jesus, and your trust in God who hasn't condemned you but has saved and redeemed you?
Yes, in the New Covenant, with Jesus at the centre, we have an exciting future. Like Biddy Chambers, let's head into our day with this hope!
Biddy Chambers was excited about her future, because she believed God was guiding the way.