Fortune Telling

Covid-19 has shocked the world and brought it to a standstill.  We are now recovering and we are limping along, staggering, or trying to push forward.  During this time of transition, we are all wondering what this world will look like when this pandemic passes and some of us want to know what the future has in store for us. 

If you are consumed by wanting to know how everything is going to turn out and what your life is going to look like, let me plead and compel you to, “Stop!  You don’t want to know—it’s not helpful!”  Why do I say this, you ask?  I’m glad you asked.

Remember what happened after Joseph died in Egypt (Exodus 1)?  A new king came into power and enslaved the Israelites.  Imagine yourself being an Israelite in those days and knew what God told Abraham, “Know for certain that for four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslaved and mistreated there” (Genesis 15:13).  How would you feel if you knew that this was your future?  How much hope would you have if you knew that this is the cards you were going to be dealt?  How would you encourage your children and your grandchildren not to lose heart if you knew that this would be their future as well?  What we want to know about our future is too short sighted and this knowledge will lead us into dark places. 

“Then what am I supposed to do,” you ask.  Again, I’m glad you asked.  Our brother Peter helps us recalibrate and refocus.  When he Peter tells his readers that life as they knew it was coming to an end, he asks them, “what kind of people ought you to be?”  He then proceeds to answer them: “You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God…” (II Peter 3:10-11).

Scripture does not have to tell us that life is capricious or fleeting because we experience this daily.  What scripture does is remind us not to be surprised, despondent, or depressed when hardship and suffering intrudes into our lives.  But not only that, scripture repeatedly reminds us that “God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether good or evil.” (Ecclesiastes 12:14)  I think this is all we need to know about our future.

What we really need to know and hold on to today is, “Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near.” (Isaiah 55:6)  If we do this, we will be overflow with peace and joy because we will know the One who holds our future.