What you 
do in the next day, week, or month really can impact the future.
Yet, so many of us are waiting. We wait and think that one day life will be better. It will be better “as soon as.”
Maybe you have said it: Life will get better as soon as:
- I get married.
- the kids get older.
- the kids are able to get themselves ready for school.
- the kids can drive themselves to school.
- our marriage becomes what it should be.
- the kids graduate from college.
- I get into graduate school.
- we pay off the house.
- we can afford to travel.
The list could go on and on. We think there are roadblocks or limitations that somehow are keeping us from really experiencing life. As soon as this or that happens, life will be good again. Right now, I have an obstacle in my way but this will change as soon as.
If you are like many, you may think that someday life will finally begin — really begin.
- Someday, my marriage will be what it ought to be.
- Someday, I will not work such long hours and will spend more time with my family.
- Someday, I will be attentive to my relationship to God.
- Someday, my daddy will give me his “well done.”
- Someday, I will finally have the job I’ve always wanted.
- Someday, I will be a part of a great church.
- Someday, my health will be better.
- Someday, everything will finally come together.
Many people sit by and wait and wait for life to be different. I did this for years! I waited for the perfect church with the perfect group of elders. I waited for just the right location. I waited for just the right kind of ministry. Now of course, if you had asked me then if I was doing this, I would have denied it. But this is exactly what I was doing.
The following are four suggestions that can give you a much better future.
1. Start now. “Someday” doesn’t exist. You have now! Life doesn’t begin “as soon as.” Life is happening now! This is your moment. Start now. Take a step. Make a move. Go first. What do you want to do? What does God want you to do?
2. Get your raft, a good guide, and start paddling. Lean into the difficult waters. Focus on riding through the rough current. Of course, we would all like for the rough waters to calm. For whatever reason, sometime they do not. Focus on enduring under the power of Jesus.
Far too many people sit on the bank, paralyzed by their fear. As you consider the future, get equipped and begin the ride. Focus on riding through the current. Do not allow your fear to rob you of the adventure of trusting God, even through the storms of life.
3. Look ahead. You are going somewhere. You are not treading water. Whether your life has turned out the way you envisioned it or not, God is at work. God is with you. You are not drifting aimlessly. Whether you realize it or not, your life matters.
4. Don’t spend much time staring in the mirror. Nothing bogs us down like totally focusing on ourselves and our problems. One of the better things we can do with this energy is to serve another person.
Make these decisions now. They will be important for your future.
Question:
Do you find yourself waiting for just the right circumstances? What if you were to take a practical step now?