God has given us a powerful mind capable of imagining many future outcomes. And while this can go in either a positive or negative direction, the negative is particularly seductive and hard to resist. As such, we might find ourselves always assuming the worst possible outcome. And while this outcome might be within the realm of possibilities, we must watch our automatic assumption toward the negative to the exclusion of all other possibilities.
Certainly, there’s no wisdom in being naïve and assuming we can get everything good we want. We live in a fallen world with brokenness, corruption, and evil all around us. It’s only reasonable then to consider the various ways this might impact our story. This helps us to count the cost and be cunning as we navigate life in this world.
But this reality shouldn’t cause us to live in fear or to be otherwise blinded to hope and the profound goodness also available. While this world is full of many tragedies, God is still on his throne, and through Christ he is bringing the restoration of all good things. And this hope inspires us to continue expecting great things even now.
The same God who gave Abraham a son in his old age, caused the walls of Jericho to fall, spared Daniel in a den of lions, and raised Christ Jesus from the dead is still at work in our lives today. Of course, the story of many others ended in tragedy from a human perspective. But even these looked forward with a great expectation of what was still to come.
And so, on the one hand, we’re not ignorant to the many hardships and grief we might have to face in this life. But we don’t lose hope or grow dim to the many ways God still shows up on behalf of his people.
In the end, there’s no need to ignore the possibility of negative outcomes. But it’s a mistake to always assume the negative and forget the great things God is still able to do.
Photo by Reynier Carl on Unsplash
