A Future Ahead

Read Proverbs 23

You will be rewarded for this; your hope will not be disappointed.

Proverbs 23:18

“You’ve got your whole life ahead of you!” we say, whether to the newly graduated or the newly disappointed in life or love. God wants us to maintain this long-term perspective as well. Today’s verse must be seen in context; verse 17 says, “Don’t envy sinners, but always continue to fear the LORD.” It is easy to lose sight of our good future and reason for hope when those who do not follow God seem to be prospering.

Actually, God is not attaching a timetable to all this “future and hope” talk—he wants us to adopt a long, long-term perspective. His view of the future stretches way beyond our view, and he has hopes for us that we cannot yet imagine. We must look to our part: continue to fear God (in the sense of revering and being in awe of him) and hold on to our hope. We may have minidisappointments, but we have the God of the future with us.

A WORD FOR TODAY

If God holds our future, we can have hope.

Lord, I thank you that you have a future for me. I trust and hope in your goodness.