In December one of our retail stores had Easter candy on display beneath a sign that announced “Spring is in the air!” The day after Christmas chocolate hearts appeared and candy canes were marked down to sell quickly. It’s not unusual to see Christmas items sharing space on the shelf with Halloween candy and now, Valentine chocolates. And cards went from snowflake white to valentine red virtually overnight. Everything seems to be getting pushed further and further ahead. Where’s the breather we used to have between holidays? Where’s the thrill of anticipation we used to enjoy? I miss it.
So let’s talk about anticipation for a minute. Remember the things you used to wait for, the things that made your whole body tingle with excitement? Maybe it was playing outside as a child and making a snowman in that first big winter storm. Perhaps it was graduating from high school or college, getting that first job or maybe getting married? And as the years progressed, what about retirement and signing up for Medicare? Any tingling going on there? Making snowmen and the more momentous events in life certainly don’t carry the same weight, but when you’re waiting for something to happen, it’s all pretty exciting.
I look at world events and what’s taking place in our own country and get knots in my stomach like most of you. At the same time I’m also excited and filled with anticipation. As bad as things are, I haven’t lost hope. My optimism isn’t just a “hope so” kind of feeling, but as the writer of Hebrews states, my hope is an anchor, both sure and steadfast (6:19-20). To those who believe, it is Christ in us, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27). Jesus made the promise recorded in John 14:3 when he said “I will come back and take you to be with me that you may also be where I am.” The Bible tells us that no one can predict the exact time when this might happen, but judging from the prophecies about Jesus’ return, it could be soon—and that’s not just a pie in the sky hope in order to escape the things I see around me.
Romans 5:5-6 tells us that while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. In verse 1 of the same chapter we are told that we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ because we have been justified by faith. No matter how hard we try, we can’t save ourselves—that’s God’s grace. The Bible also tells us that things are not going to get better. We have a moral obligation to do all that we can, but in spite of what mankind is doing to relieve the aches and pains of our aging world, it’s like putting a band-aid on a gaping wound. Ultimately both outcomes, our salvation and fixing the world, are in God’s hands. He accomplished the first at Calvary; the next is yet to be. And that should make you tingle with anticipation.
Sure, I want world peace, more civility in government, and every child to go to bed at night with a full stomach. There are a lot of things we all want right now, but some things just won’t happen until the right time—the time when Jesus returns and makes all things new. Be ready, but don’t become impatient. Hope does not disappoint. All things happen according to God’s plan and purpose—in His good time. The wait will be worth it!