You don't have to raise your hand or anything, but let me ask how many of you spend a fair amount of time wishin'. Sometimes it's a passing thought, such as, "I wish it weren't raining." Or it might be something with a bit more substance, "I wish I lived somewhere else." It could even be as extreme as, "I wish I were married to someone else."
I have no doubt that there are whole flocks of people who spend hours imagining what would happen if they were chosen to be on one of the reality TV shows. From the makeover segments on various talk shows to programming based on the concept, like What Not to Wear, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Survivor, The Amazing Race, even The Biggest Loser viewers are drawn into the world of wishin'. After all, wouldn't it be nice if some outside entity would come in and improve our looks or fix up our home or provide a vacation, an exciting challenge, a financial windfall? What would be the harm in that?
For that matter, what's wrong with thinking about how someone else's life might be improved in similar ways? Certainly we have other people's good in mind when we conclude, "I wish he would pay attention to his manly duties." Or "I wish she would take better care of that responsibility". Or "I wish they would just listen to my advice."
On a superficial level I suppose a bit of wishin' is fine. It may be what leads people to make positive changes in their lives. Perhaps the person who keeps saying to themselves, "I wish I wasn't always rushing to get out the door." will decide to set their alarm clock earlier and enjoy a more peaceful start to their day. I know I've been there myself many times. On a deeper level though I wonder what happens when/if a habit of wishin' develops.
I started to ponder this topic when my mind latched onto a brief portion of "The Five Silent Years of Corrie ten Boom" by Pamela Rosewell. On page 47 of our 1986 paperback edition, the author quotes a letter Corrie received.
"A missionary friend had brought you [Corrie] by car and you had been having a very heavy program through the previous weeks. So you looked around your room and made some remark about how peaceful it was. Then you looked at the friend who had brought you and you said 'I wish ...' But you did not finish the sentence. Instead you looked up and said, 'Father, You do all things well. Thank you.'"
I was trying to get through the book at the time and it was a few weeks before I had time to go back and locate the passage. It had continued to niggle at the edge of my mind and heart. What was it about wishin' that had caused Corrie ten Boom to stop and pray? It seemed so innocuous. My meditation has been developing into a deep glimpse into my heart.
God is sovereign. As Creator and Sustainer, He is the ultimate authority and ruling power of the world. He oversees every detail, no-thing escapes His notice, that His will might be accomplished and His glory made known. The Word also teaches that God is at work in the lives of His own as He prepares them to spend eternity in His presence. Romans 8:28-30 is only one place where this refining activity is outlined. These truths lead us to the only reasonable conclusion. Since God knows and orchestrates every detail of our lives (the good, the bad AND the ugly) for our sanctification, the circumstances around us MUST be what He has arranged for that purpose.
Okay then, that must mean that the rainy day, the place I live, the person to whom I am married, are all part of God's perfect plan to transform me into the image of His Son. 2 Corinthians 3:18 It may not be easy to come to grips with that truth when the picnic is ruined or the house needs repairs or my husband and I are arguing. Circumstances of any kind do not change Truth. It is unalterable. It is what Francis Schaeffer called True Truth.
Since the circumstances in my own life are set and overseen by God for my best and His glory because I am His, bought with a price, that must also be True for all those whom He has chosen. The situations surrounding my Brothers and Sisters are also being coordinated by God for their sanctification. Our Father is using the details of their lives to cause the man to truly undertake his manly duties, the woman to meet her responsibilities, and all of them to seek His will. Real change happens in the heart and God is the One who affects those changes. Acts 16:14
By God's grace, the rest I have been enjoying as I settle into a richer understanding of His sovereignty in my own life has been spreading into my thoughts about the lives others. I find myself praying with an honestly thankful heart as I consider circumstances and situations in the lives of those I love. The mindset and heart condition of Eli in 1 Samuel 3:18 is a model to emulate. Upon learning that God was about to carry out His promised retribution for the sin in his family for which no sacrifice or offering could atone, Eli said, "He is the Lord; let Him do what is good in His eyes."
Scripture tells us that surrender is part of godly worship. Matthew 4:10 directs all believers to "Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only." I want to be fully yielded to my loving Father. I want my wishin' to be transformed by my hopin'. I want to be lost in the wonder of who God is and all that He has prepared for me both now and in the future. Psalm 42:5; 62:5; 147:11, Isaiah 40:31, Romans 5:4; 12:12, Titus 2:13, Hebrews 6:19,20, 1 John 3:1-3 Hallelujah! Christ, in me, is the hope of glory. Colossians 1:27
How my life is changing:
I find myself checking out the wishin' I do.
Am I subtly whining about God's provisions in His love-inspired shepherding?
I find myself identifying with Paul in wrestling my body into submission. 1 Corinthians 9:27
I find myself coming more quickly and fully into my Daddy's presence, asking Him to make His will my own.
Am I willing to worship God no matter the setting?
I find myself turning my wishin' for other folks into prayers of thanksgiving for God's divine work in their lives.
Do I really know that much that I even have an inkling of what needs to happen?
I find myself enjoying more freedom and a richer prayer life. Praise God!
May these thoughts on Wishin' encourage you to set your heart more fully on A-hopin' for "the glory that will be revealed in us". Romans 8:18
Amen and Emmanuel
