Long Term Thinking (Hope)

by Kelly Knowlden

For most of us, we end up getting mired in the here and now, because it is “in-your-face.” So we get stuck on the moments of kids who don’t obey, teens who won’t work, workmates who are incorrigible, bosses who are not compassionate, friends who fail us, front page news that is ever-alarming, etc. What should we do with all that? Let me suggest two things:

First, get something else “in-your-face.” Remember what Hebrews 12:1-3 says: “let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus.....Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” We need the daily reminders to ourselves that what we see and feel is not all that is. We need to remember that Jesus Christ came as the Son of God to experience life in a broken world to identify with us and now pleads for us. We need to remind ourselves that while I live with the brokenness of sin in me and all around me, I do not need to despair for Jesus has overcome the world and has promised something greater is coming. That leads us to the second thing.

Second, we need to remember that today is only a “slice of life” that has a before-this-day and an after-this-day to it. Today is not all there is. We often respond to circumstances as though there is no history to the problem or as though there will be no tomorrow. We want answers and solutions immediately. Often that is not how God works in the world. In Psalm 90, God reminds us that He is “our dwelling place throughout all generations. Before the mountains were born or You brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting You are God.” The psalmist goes on to say that our days are like a blip on a screen and ends with asking God to “Teach us to count our days.” A songwriter added, “Make our days count.” We need to be people of long-term vision.

Children and young people are caught in the immediate gratification syndrome that is prevalent in all ages but is rampant in our day. Communication is instantaneous, connections to the web are becoming faster than light, fast food is available, credit allows us to get what we want when we want it, relationships that don’t work are dissolved, and what seems expedient at this moment is the answer that is given.

We need to build in a long term view that puts Jesus in the central place so that we do not grow weary and lose heart.