Content With Each Good Day

The main characters in the Lord of the Rings had no idea what their futures held.  They could be sure of trial, pain, and suffering, but could be confident of little else.  The outcome of their upcoming journey was completely unknown.  Failure was the likely result.  Yet during a brief time of refreshment before the storm, their attitudes surprised me greatly, and made me feel disappointment over my own responses in better situations.

"The future, good or ill, was not forgotten, but ceased to have any power over the present.  Health and hope grew strong in them, and they were content with each good day as it came..." - J.R.R. Tolkien

Life is hard when your future seems very uncertain.  I have a real problem with letting the unknowns of my life kill any enjoyment I can find in today.  I am continually tested in this area, because I have so many unanswered questions about what I should be doing, what my life will look like down the road, or if the things I have hoped and prayed for are just not going to happen.  Hope shrinks easily in my heart, and I can give in to fear.  But God has promised grace for whatever path He is calling me to walk.  I love this quote by Elizabeth Elliott:

"God shields us from most of the things we fear, but when He chooses not to shield us, He unfailingly allotts grace in the measure needed.  It is for us to choose to receive or refuse it.  Our joy or our misery will depend upon that choice."

This is one of my new favorite promises from the Bible:

"Thy shoes shall be iron and brass; and as thy days, so shall thy strength be.  There is none like unto the God...who rideth upon the heaven in thy help, and in his excellency on the sky. The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy them."  Deuteronomy 33:25-27

Before I read this, I had just been telling God that I really couldn't continue on with these questions and trials anymore.  I couldn't pick my feet up anymore.  He needed to come in and fix my problems, because I just couldn't stand the test anymore.  But this promise came instead, an answer to my prayer I didn't think I needed.  

But let me go back to the story.  When I compare the Hobbits' situation with mine, I find that mine is far better than theirs:

 - They didn't know what the final outcome would be, but I know that the final page in my story will find me in the presence of God, no latter what else lies in between.  Nothing can change that. 

 - The had no assurance that their needs would be met along the way.  I know that my God shall supply all my needs. 

 - They didn't know who would make it to the end, or whether or not any of them would one day find themselves alone with no one to share the burden of their task.  No matter what earthly people leave me, I know that I will never be alone, for Jesus has promised to bear my burden and guide me all the way.   

 - In reality, they had very little reason to hope.  I have every reason to hope, and my hope is certain because God controls everything from beginning to end.

So, my response to trials and fears should be equal to the Hobbits, if not better.  God has given me so many blessings to bring me joy, and so many graces to renew my hope.  I can't let the unknown path ahead ruin that.  I have to choose live in the grace God has given me.  My joy or my misery will depend upon that choice.