On the Edge

2017 ending is difficult for me. It's the end of a lot of certainty I've had in my life. For the first time in my life, I don't know exactly what the next year looks like, where I'll be at this time next year, or even who I'll be with. And about a month ago, that would have scared the crap out of me. But as I stand among the last breaths of 2017, I look forward to uncertain days with one certainty in mind. God is faithful. There are trying days ahead. Pain, heartache, loss, all of these things are sure to be on the road ahead, yet I know my God will see me through them. I am not confident because of knowledge of the future, I am confident despite it. My hope isn't in location, status, relationships or peace, my hope is found in the finished work of Christ, the perfect provision of the Father and the constant sanctification of the Spirit. As I look back on the year, I know I wasn't always what I needed to be, but I also know that I am more like Christ today then I was yesterday. God has provided for me financially, emotionally, unexpectedly and fully. The words of Paul in Philippians are constantly in my mind. Faced with uncertainty and fear, he emphasized joy, he was confident that Christ would be faithful to his people and he exhorted the Church to follow Christ's example of humility and service. It wasn't about their immediate safety or well-being, it wasn't about their comfort, it was about Christ having his way in their lives. Looking forward, I pray I can say the same words over my life. I pray I can count it joy to suffer dishonor in the name of Christ, I pray I can make myself nothing and become a servant to the glory of God, I pray I can avoid the pursuits of fools and take hold of the things of God.

2017 brought celebration. 2018 brings steadfast service. 2017 brought certainty. 2018 brings the unknown. 2017 brought endings. 2018 brings new beginnings. 2017 was full of God's faithfulness. 2018 is full of that same faithfulness. And I can't wait to see what form that takes.