Synopsis: Who knows what tomorrow will hold? Who knows what is in store for us in 2023? Who knows how things will turn out in this volatile world in the coming months? Who knows? Only God! That’s why we need to fiercely lean into him for today, for tomorrow, and for 2023, expressing our utter dependence on his good purposes being fulfilled in our lives and recognizing his sovereign control over each second of our existence. The Psalmist David understood that people who live under the daily threat of death like he did tend to get that reality better than those of us who live relatively safe, carefree, and easy lives. We tend to slide into the false notion that a pain-free, worry-free, tragedy-free life is our divine right. Not David! He got it right when he wrote, “Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.” (Psalm 139:16) So, as scary as tomorrow might seem, take courage, because as a Christ-follower, the sun will come out tomorrow—God will make sure of it!
Moments With God // Psalm 139:16
Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.
Who knows what will happen tomorrow? Just ask any family whose lives were displayed on the late-night news last evening—whose peace and tranquility was unexpectedly interrupted by some sort of disaster: a car accident coming home from work, a random act of violence outside the restaurant, a massive layoff at the company that no one saw coming, the sudden bacterial infection resistant to all known forms of medication that attacked their child without warning. None of them got up that morning expecting anything close to that would happen during the day that lay ahead.
Who knows what tomorrow will hold? Only God! That’s why we need to fiercely lean into him for this day, expressing our utter dependence on his good purposes being fulfilled in our lives and recognizing his sovereign control over each second of our existence. The Psalmist David understood that people who live under the daily threat of death like he did tend to get that reality better than those of us who live relatively safe, carefree, and easy lives. We tend to slide into the false notion that a pain-free, worry-free, tragedy-free life is our divine right.
Not David! He got it right when he wrote in Psalm 139:16,
Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed.
Only God knows how many days you have and what will happen in each of those days. Only he knows the exact number of your days, and you will not live a day longer nor die a day sooner than what he already has planned for you. That is why it is not wise to get too far ahead of God in your thoughts about tomorrow. Now, obviously, this is not about wise planning and preparation. That is certainly taught throughout the Bible, and a great deal of emphasis is placed on that throughout the Bible. Yet even when wise planning has been followed, Solomon warned in Proverbs 27:1,
Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.”
In the New Testament, James offered this wise counsel:
I have a word for you who brashly announce, “Today—at the latest, tomorrow—we’re off to such and such a city for the year. We’re going to start a business and make a lot of money.” You don’t know the first thing about tomorrow. You’re nothing but a wisp of fog, catching a brief bit of sun before disappearing. Instead, make it a habit to say, “If the Master wills it and we’re still alive, we’ll do this or that.” (James 4:13-15, MSG)
What both of these wise men from the Old and New Testament, respectively, are calling for is living with an attitude of gratitude for each and every breath we take, expressing humble dependence on the Almighty for each and every second of our existence, and submitting each and every ounce of our energy today, and if he graciously gives us tomorrow, to use for his good purposes.
When we live that way, we can sing with confidence, “The sun will come out tomorrow.” Maybe that will mean the blazing sunshine of yet another day here on Planet Earth, but if not, the joy of unending days where there is no need for the sun since the indescribable glory of the shining presence of God himself will render our current source of light and heat meaningless.
So, as scary as that might seem, take courage because, as a Christ-follower, the sun will come out tomorrow.
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