We wait as we look forward

Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Romans 8:18-22

As the cliché goes, “Nothing is built overnight.” We can easily become impatient when we are not reaching our goals. We know that when we reach our goals we feel important. However, we discover that there are things in life that God is using to teach us so we can learn patience in attaining our goals. Paul, from the text, was encouraging Christians in Rome to learn how to look forward and while doing so, they wait. In v. 25, “But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay.” If we look forward to something we don’t have yet, we must wait patiently and confidently. Raising up children is a good example of what Paul was stating. There are certain things in rearing our children that require patience. How many times do we remind our children to be cautious or we provide them instructions? At times, we need to repeat the directives so many times until we are blue in the face and we wonder if what we told them will ever sink in their minds, so we look forward and we wait. We have to take it by faith that one day, what we have told them will sink in and we will be grateful that we persevered. How about when we are dealing with failures in life? Paul, in spite of his faithfulness, has to deal with failures. We know this in our minds theoretically, but how do we really react when we face defeat that hits us right at our guts? Job when faced with difficulties in life including defeats raised this question: “Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?” (Job 2:10). To answer such question with “yes” could take a lifetime. We have to remind to keep our minds to the end goal and not to lose sight of it. Today we groan, there is pain, all of which is, of course, the result of the Fall because of Adam’s sin. But all these groaning are not useless when we face the struggle and we view each of those obstacles as a blessing; something we learn from and to be grateful for. As Paul alluded to from the text, one day creation will be delivered. Let us not just focus on today’s sufferings instead let us look forward to tomorrow’s glory. “So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever” (2 Corinthians 4:18).

Blessings,

Noel De Guzman

www.my-wbc.com