“We never truly live in the present: In the past we lived for the future, now with the future being the present we live in the past or in the future of the future, in the future we will most assuredly live for the past or what we presently call the present.” What a confusing conundrum to be caught in… and yet most every human being experiences life this way. We are either remembering the times that have come or we are comparing the present with our idea of the future.
This topic has been on my heart ever since Training Camp for The World Race. I realized that I was so excited for what The Lord would do with this next year that I forgot that The Lord is moving right here and now. It’s all too easy to get caught up with the hurt and pain of the past or the expectations of the future. I feel that we often forget the blessings of today. Charles Dickens says it well “Reflect upon your present blessings of which every man has many – not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.”
Because this thought was on my heart I went to search the scriptures and see what it says about living for today; I was completely blown away. The word “Today” is used 205 times in the scriptures. Why is it such an incredible number? The majority of the scriptures are written in the past tense. In your day to day life try to use the word today while describing something in the past… The only way to do this is to quote someone’s words. This is a huge testimony that God wishes us to live in the present. I will give you an example, “Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” Luke 23:43 (NIV)
Jesus tells us, “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:25-34(NIV). I love how in the scriptures reiterate this point over and over.
R. D. Laing says, “We live in a moment of history where change is so speeded up that we begin to see the present only when it is already disappearing.” I feel that this is because the majority of people only focus on this life. C. S. Lewis says “If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.” The Kingdom can be lived here in the present. We have been gifted with The Holy Spirit to guide our way.
My prayer for all of us is that Today we see God’s Kingdom come, Today we see Paradise in each of God’s children, Today we put all fear aside, and Today we LOVE like there is no tomorrow.
