By Ife J. Ibitayo
“Live in the moment” is the anti-mantra of my life. I always find myself stuck in the past or pining for the future. I had a great childhood, and I have great hope for the future (Jeremiah 29:11; 1 Corinthians 2:9). But the problem has always been the time in between.
Today, I have to wrestle with the pressures of work, the expectations of other people, and the daily grind of the mundane. March 6th isn’t my birthday. It isn’t Christmas. It is just like every other day. And the presence of COVID has only heightened the banality of my current existence. Solomon spoke well when he said, “Everything is wearisome beyond description. No matter how much we see, we are never satisfied. No matter how much we hear, we are not content. History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new” (Ecclesiastes 1:8-9 NLT).
Why not Live In the Past?
During seasons like this, I am especially tempted to sink into the past. I want to spend my days reminiscing about the years I enjoyed hanging out with friends and family. I want to dream about game nights and weekend getaways, vacations and get togethers. The list goes on and on, and the more I think about it, the more depressed I become.
Solomon went on to say, Don’t long for ‘the good old days.’ This is not wise” (Ecclesiastes 7:10 NLT). But why? If I cannot find satisfaction in today, why not find it vicariously through yesterdays gone by? This is what Joni Eareckson Tada did when she was paralyzed from the chest down. She spent her days escaping into the past. She found solace in remembering the times when she used to swim in clear lakes and whip over the ground on horseback. But we all know that “wonderland” can never truly satisfy. Living in the past can only leave us frustrated in the present.
Why not Live in the Future?
If we can’t escape into the past, how about the future? Tomorrow, COVID will be eradicated and our lives will be restored. But the problem with tomorrow is that that day keeps on moving. Life was supposed to return to normal last spring, then last summer, then no later than winter. We were months out from the end of this global pandemic back in March of last year, and we’re still months out.
When we pin our hopes on an uncertain future, our happiness is guaranteed to be uncertain. But God commands us to “rejoice in the Lord always” (Philippians 4:4a NIV). Some people reduce this command to the salvation of Christ, saying that our unhappiness stems from focusing on temporal, physical things when our focus should be on eternal, spiritual things (Colossians 3:2).
There is some truth in this line of reasoning. But the God who created the physical world and called it good never changed His mind (Genesis 1:31). Even when times are tough, good still abounds. I found myself close to tears last week as I reflected on my close friends who have stuck with me all these years. I’ve basked in the beauty of God’s great outdoors even in the middle of winter, and I’ve relished the evenings I’ve been able to spend getting lost in a good TV show or video game.
Conclusion
The past is gone. The future is uncertain. And the present is challenging. But “God is good all the time. And all the time God is good.” Sometimes we just have to look a little harder to rediscover this truth than others.
“This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
(Psalm 118:24 ESV)