09 February 2009

Facing Tomorrow

Someone once made the claim that “To borrow from tomorrow is to be in debt to time.” Simply put, worrying about tomorrow is not beneficial or productive. In other words, it is not good for us to worry about what tomorrow will bring; however, being told not to worry is counter-cultural. We live in a society and a nation in which planning is a valuable practice. We plan for trips. We plan for going to college. We plan for applying to jobs and schools. We plan for parties and social events. We even plan when we are playing sports; what is practice other than a planning session for a game. We plan to get married. Some of us plan to have children. We plan for their education, and then we try to plan for retirement. Life is spent in either a planning mode or an enacting mode. We fear remaining still; we thrive on forward progress and upward mobility. That is the culture in which we live, a culture that is founded upon action.
The Constitution is supposed to be an active document. The Pledge of Allegiance is a statement of active commitment. The Emancipation Proclamation was a document calling for action. Even in the midst of the current economic situation, our President Barack Obama has pulled together an economic team. The significance behind this is that a team has a goal, a mission, a prize for which is the object of their striving. The members of a team are conditioned to keep pressing in the midst of adversity. They are commissioned to go out there and play the game in the manner dictated by the coach. As long as the coach’s game-plan is followed, the team will in the end emerge victorious. Similarly, our God has prepared a game-plan for us in his Son, Jesus who taught and showed us the way to win in life. Yes, we are in the midst of difficult times. Yes, we are on the cusp of uncertainty. Nevertheless, we are in a position of potential. We are on the brink of a transformative move of God, but in order for the transformation to take place, we have to be able to accept the fact that we do not have any dominion whatsoever over tomorrow.