Embracing the Future

by Rebecca Barlow Jordan

As January rolls around each year, I always hear the term “embrace the future.” Because God wired me with a positive personality, I’m usually eager to do that. But some seasons present greater challenges than others. How do you embrace an unknown future?

Since life in the last couple of years has resembled a roller coaster, it’s easy to wonder if the ride will ever end. I’m not alone. Some are emerging like ants from their underground tunnels, still spinning and reeling with pandemic emotions. Losses hang in the air like early morning fog, and we may be asking God to heal our wounds and remove any unwanted baggage that’s weighing us down.

At the beginning of each year, I usually spend intentional time with God simply to re-evaluate and invite His perspective on my life. This year is no exception. I’m asking God to sweep away any foolish mistakes, wrong decisions, or any harmful habits I might have collected in the past year that cloud my vision and prevent me from seeing the beautiful opportunities He is preparing for me.

Embracing the future means I’m choosing to leave the past behind. I refuse to beat myself up or second-guess any mistakes and misconceptions. Instead, in my prayer to God, I’m asking: “Lord, like the yard art in my backyard, would you recycle those into beautiful, positive lessons I can learn, actions that will propel me forward, not backward?”

And He is doing that. But God is also teaching me the value of remembering. I will not make idols of good things from the past, of accumulated credentials, or God’s surprise blessings amid uncertainty. Those tracks of God’s faithfulness will continue to humble me and lead me into a questionable future with joy and trust in the One who is good and who works all things out for our good (Romans 8:28).

I don’t want to let the past define me. Instead, I’m asking God to use it to refine me. As long as God gives me breath and life, I can choose to believe the best and let His hope influence my attitudes for the present and in the future. God is still the God of the impossible, and He not only wants to transform me daily, but He promises to finish the work He started in me (Philippians 1:6). That’s a truth I want to remember and celebrate daily.

Will that be easy? No. Some days I may question what to do, or ask Jesus what He is doing. But I know that faith keeps going, reaching, and believing that Jesus is in control. For me, embracing the future means welcoming whatever Jesus wants in my life to make me more like Him.

As I close my evaluation time and my prayer to God, He reminds me of one more thing. While forgetting the past and remembering the past and present are so important, God’s Word also whispers to me to reach forward and keep my eyes on the right goal—Jesus. When I do that, He will help me discover the life for which I was made and uncover the purpose for which I was created.

One day, hearing His “well done” will make “embracing the future” all worthwhile.

One thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13-14 NKJV

About the author: Rebecca Barlow Jordan is a day-voted follower of Jesus who helps others find intimacy with God. She is also a bestselling author of eleven books, and winner of the Serious Writers 2021 Book of the Decade. With the pen of a poet and the heart of a disciple, Rebecca encourages others from years of Bible study and teaching experience, in over 2000 greeting cards and other inspirational books and articles, and through her website and blog at rebeccabarlowjordan.com, visited by guests in over 170 countries.

Join the conversation: What does embracing the future mean to you?