What's Coming is Better!

I woke up today to 12 degree weather and the news that it won’t even make it to 20 degrees. I asked myself what in the world I was supposed to do with that. Come on! This is North Carolina, the average temperature for mid-February is in the 50s. Why are we looking at weather in the teens?! I was not pleased at all. But then I scrolled down the screen on my weather app and saw something exciting! It’s going to be 55 on Sunday. It was in that moment that I heard a phrase echo in my spirit…what’s coming is better. There’s a song by Deon Kipping with this very title and I love the song but it’s something entirely different when you hear the Lord whisper that in your ear. There’s a level of comfort and peace that comes that is incomparable to any other voice. So, today, I want to remind you that what is coming for you is so much better than where you currently are.

Recently, I’ve seen some strong people struggling to find the strength to move forward after devastating life blows. Have you been there? The death of someone you love, the loss of a job, the breakup of a marriage, these are all things that you know are possibilities; but when it becomes a reality, it can upset your whole view of life. Perhaps you have asked yourself some tough questions. Why did this happen to me? What is the lesson that I am supposed to be learning? When will things change? I’ve been there. But eventually, the questions stop and you start looking for answers. God wants to remind you today that He is Jehovah Roi, the God who sees. But you know what else? He has plans for you. According to Jeremiah29:11, they are plans for a hope and a future. Last year, God encouraged me to read beyond that one verse and see what He told the people of Israel during their Babylonian captivity. Today, He sent me right back to that same spot in Jeremiah. Look at what God says in verses 12 -14.  “When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I’ll listen. When you come looking for me, you’ll find me. Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.” God’s Decree. “I’ll turn things around for you. I’ll bring you back from all the countries into which I drove you”—God’s Decree—“bring you home to the place from which I sent you off into exile. You can count on it.” Do you see what I see? God is promising restoration and peace after the struggle and bondage. He is promising better!

Sometimes, it is hard to see better when your circumstances are screaming WORSE! You are praying, fasting, serving but yet you can’t see breakthrough. You might even be asking God if you are worthy to serve in the midst of your tiredness, your frustration, or your humanness. Can He even use you like this? But let me tell you something, God is beyond faithful and He wants you to be at your best. He wants you to be whole! He wants you to see beyond your right now to what is coming. I love what Paul tells the Church at Corinth to encourage them when circumstances seem overwhelming in 2 Corinthians.  I believe God has this very same reminder for you today.

“We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair.  We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed.  Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies. Yes, we live under constant danger of death because we serve Jesus, so that the life of Jesus will be evident in our dying bodies.  So we live in the face of death, but this has resulted in eternal life for you.  But we continue to preach because we have the same kind of faith the psalmist had when he said, “I believed in God, so I spoke.” We know that God, who raised the Lord Jesus, will also raise us with Jesus and present us to himself together with you. All of this is for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory.  That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! 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 Cor. 4: 8 – 18 NLT)

Be encouraged, saints! God is working on your behalf and the outcome that He has for you is great! So, I challenge you to take a stand and get a praise in your heart and mouth. Look at grief and tell it that joy is coming! Look at anger and tell it that happiness is coming! Look at frustration and tell it that peace is coming! Look at lack and tell it that provision is coming! You, sir, are on the brink of your better! You, mam, are on the edge of your breakthrough! Don’t let any of those heavy burdens weigh you down for one more day. What’s coming is better and you need to be ready!

 AMEN