EXCURSIONS BEYOND THE HORIZON

I’ve never been accused of being a devout optimist. I wish I could always be inclined towards seeing possibilities, but there have been just too many cases in my life when hope and trust ended up giving way to disaster.

But despite that problem, I often enjoy when God helps me see to the “ripples” of consequences yet to come. Those are the merciful times when he takes me on an excursion beyond the seen to what will be. I’m not claiming to be a prophet as such, merely that it is more like seeing a row of dominoes and knowing that if the first one falls then the rest would follow a natural reaction.

It is for me a time of blessing. For it is glimpse into understanding how the hand of God can touch in so many ways. That includes striking us when we deserve it in a way that truly affects some part of our life we thought was most secure.

So often we can read the scriptures and see parables about life and consequences and think we are somehow immune. We hear the story about not taking life for granting and think, I’ll always have tomorrow.

Quietly, presuming we are somehow not mortal after all, we make plans. And when they work out they only fuel on appetite for thinking we can control our future.

How said are those who deal with life as if it will last forever. Or who ignore the storms brewing on the horizon. Somewhere in between resides the deeper truth. It is the excursion beyond the horizon God will lead any willing to listen and follow.

It has taken me a long time to reach a point where I don’t obsessed about things that will never be. I try more and more to simply celebrate the precious gift of life that God grants us. However, that doesn’t mean I’m able to do it all the time, regardless of my desires.

Still, there is something truly freeing about asking the question occasionally, what if this really was my last day? Could I stand before the Lord in a heartbeat and feel able to thank him for taking me home?

That is a question only each person can ask for him or herself. And for some they will never ask it.

But whether we have tomorrow, yesterday is the legacy of what we choose. Perhaps in that we find an occasional give of peace that tells us how much we all truly need the blessing of grace.

I’m not sure we all remember it as often as we should. That can be a challenge. One that gets so easily lost while searching for answers. In the quiet we can celebrate the sound of our own heartbeat and know God hears every stroke, even the ones when they don’t think about him or eternity.