Anticipation

“After this fog clears out, we are looking for a better day than we had yesterday.  That gloomy grey, drizzly stuff is behind us and we can anticipate a better, sunnier day today as the day goes on.”  

Words to that effect were part of this morning’s weather forecast on the morning news.  The description of yesterday’s weather startled me a little.  I didn’t find yesterday to be grey and gloomy.  I rather enjoyed my Sunday.  

How could my recollection of a Sunday enjoyed be so different from the description the weather guy offered this morning?

I spent a good chunk of Saturday morning setting up our rain barrels.  I had to buy new hoses to connect them all.  This gave me the opportunity to rethink how we set them up and connect them together.  “That is the best setup I’ve ever done,” I said to myself.  (I say that to myself every year.)

Saturday was warm and sunny.  At supper time I jokingly asked Sharon, “Do you think there is any water in the barrels yet?”  Since this year was “the best setup ever,”  I was eager to see if my new plans for overflow would work, if the spigot location was better than last year, and if I had eliminated that pesky leak.  There was no way to know until they were filled with water.  I wanted rain.

Ahhh.  There it is.  Anticipation.  That simple difference in mindset created two distinct perspectives about Sunday’s weather.  For me, the rain was beneficial to the completion of my rain barrel project.  Without it I wouldn’t know if my changes were successful or not.  For others who had plans of enjoying the great outdoors, the rain was a frustrating detractor that ruined what they anticipated.

Anticipation is one reason why people go fishing.  You never know what you will catch.  “Just one more cast” can turn a 15 minute break into a two hour dockside marathon.  Anticipation is part of what makes Christmas so much fun.  What gifts can we expect, and how will people respond to what we give them?  Part of the joy of baking or BBQing is the anticipation created by great smells that makes our mouths water.

There are also the not-so-pleasant anticipations:  surgery that is necessary to correct a medical condition, saying good-bye to loved ones who move to the other side of the country, or living through a dusty renovation in cramped quarters.  Even these things, though, can be endured if we keep our eye on the ultimate outcome:  better health, new opportunities for work, and a bright new environment to call home.

Even Jesus lived with anticipation.  The author of Hebrews encouraged his readers to remember Jesus, who,  “for the joy set out for him he endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.”  Jesus took the long view.  He anticipated the good outcome of His sacrificial work.

A core reality of living by faith is living with anticipation.  Jesus warned His disciples that choosing to follow Him and embracing life in the Kingdom would come with a cost.  There would be social rejection, deferred gratification, and experiencing loss.  The key to surviving all that was anticipating the good outcome:  being part of the Kingdom of God.

The processes used by the Holy Spirit to produce character maturation and transformation is based on anticipation.  When we trust that God is working a greater purpose in spite of the discomfort, when we embrace the reality that there is purpose even though we are confused, we make ourselves malleable and committed to the change He desires to produce.

The thing about anticipation is that it usually has very little to do with WHAT is happening.  If we understand that “IT” will bring good outcomes, we can have hope regardless of what “IT” may be.  When we commit to the truth that God is always engaged and therefore there is always a “WHY” (albeit unknown by us), we can live with confidence in spite of our circumstances.

Anticipation has the ability to re-contextualize anything.  Grey and gloomy can be a day of joy.  Challenges and setbacks can be moments of learning God’s faithfulness.  Whatever our circumstances, if we are pursuing life in the Kingdom, we do so with anticipation that God IS accomplishing His purposes and plans, that His goodness will be triumphant, and that, in the end, we will be the benefactors.

Bring on the drizzle!