The Gift of Anticipation

This plant, bursting with potential, was delivered to my door before Christmas. It was my pleasure to observe the progress each day as it became what I knew was going to be beautiful blooms. The daily watch heightened my anticipation for what was to come. I was not disappointed. 

There are numerous blessings that God freely gives to us before we know we need them. This year has been a constant reminder of that aspect of God's providence and we have prayed that we not take those precious gifts for granted in the future. But for some blessings, I think God waits for us to know we need them. He gives us time to feel the need and wrestle with our own inability. He waits for us to come to Him. We thought we did that months ago but have felt the need more with each passing day. We purposefully offer the sacrifice of praise. We continue with conviction and anticipation as we look to the One who every good and perfect gift comes from. We look to He who works all things together for good. We look to our Father who does not slumber. Anticipation is a gift that adds tremendous value to its object. Like a child waiting for Christmas, our hope and anticipation is tied directly to the delight at the reception. Our gratitude and praise to Him comes from a heart that knows want. 

We were not very far into 2020 when any bad situation was explained by "Well, you know it is 2020." Then came quips like "Let's not set the clocks back for daylight savings time because we don't want to add even one more minute to 2020." And while we have eagerly looked to 2021, our learned cynicism now sneers at the realization that our situation is not the fault of the calendar.

Today is the last day of 2020. My daughter gives me a calendar each year filled with pictures of grandchildren. This year, that calendar is stacked in a 2020 post office somewhere. I do not know what the 2021 calendar looks like but as we turn that virtual page tomorrow, my anticipation is in The Christ. We look to 2021 with hope and anticipation in Jesus. He will not disappoint.

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also given people a sense of who he is. But they can’t completely understand what God has done from beginning to end. (Ecclesiastes 3:11 NIRV)

In His Time

Hebrews 13:15, James 1:17, Romans 8:28, Psalm 121:3