Do you feel like all the what-ifs of life crush your hope in God? Yep, me too.
Remember that show Ally McBeal from the late 90’s? Or you may be too young to remember, you young thang you. I don’t remember much about the show – I can barely remember what I ate for breakfast – except that Ally would sometimes have scenarios play out in her mind of how a particular situation might turn out – usually devastatingly or embarrassingly. Then she would mentally snap back into reality.
I have moments like that.
My hope in God gets squashed as my mind takes me down paths of “OH MY GOODNESS WHAT IF THIS OR THIS OR THAT HAPPENS?!” Then I start to have a mini-panic attack over all the what-if, devastating scenarios… until God graciously helps me snap back into reality.
Last week He snapped me back with one, powerful sentence, “My grace will meet you there, Lara.”
I forget that. I forget that God promises grace for this day. And only this day. Just as He gave manna to the Israelites day by day, He gives exactly what we need day by day.
The Path to Hope in God
That’s why it’s a complete and utter waste of time to fret over tomorrow. Because God’s grace isn’t promised to us for tomorrow. It’s promised to us for today.
“Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”
Matthew 6:34
Living in this day without worrying about tomorrow takes practice. It takes trials – trials through which God proves His faithfulness. It takes an active remembrance of the goodness of God.
I don’t know what you’re facing, but I can bet that because you live on this planet, there are some unknowns up ahead. And with unknowns come the temptation to panic.
It’s fine and human if we travel down the “what if” road for a minute. But let’s just make sure to follow it up with the greater reality, “God, I trust that even if _____ your grace will meet me there. And your grace will be sufficient.”
