I think that there's a huge difference between saying "I will do this" and saying "I promise I will do this." AND GUESS WHAT. God's promises are always good and true.
"For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory." ~2 Corinthians 1:20That verse makes my soul tingle.
Promises are assurances. It's something we can base our expectations on.
So what does it mean to have a Road Full of Promise? Oh, my soul is tingling again. I feel anticipation in my bones. Seriously. It's one of those things I have a hard time putting into words, but I feel. At least to me, it means good things are coming--are assured. Promise is hope. It means you have possibilities in your future. And good things. Basically, it means this:
"Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose." ~Romans 8:26-28God's got a will and a plan for us. We do not even know often how to pray as we ought, let alone know what we are to do. But God's got that road ready full of promises.
Also, reflecting on this
...What I really lack is to be clear in my mind what I am to do, not what I am to know, except in so far as a certain understanding must precede every action. The thing is to understand myself, to see what God really wishes me to do; the thing is to find the truth which is true for me, to find the idea for which I can live and die.
Oh, Kierkegaard.
And so what am I to do on this Road Full of Promise?
Oh, we'll see. :)
Really, though, the past few days I've somewhat come to an acceptance. An acceptance of I don't know what I want to "do" or what I ought to "do." And I'm (mostly) okay with that. So I don't know my whole life at 21. So what? I know my next step (ish). And my next step is just a continuing of what I want to do--of what I want to be. I'm going to continue learning what I like and pursuing relationships and finding ways to love. I'm going to take life step by step. Will I have to "figure things out" after grad school? Probably so, at least in some way. But you know what? I'm choosing to try to not worry on that. Because it's not here yet. So I can't do it anyway. (Besides, we all know our plans change all the time.) So I will continue praying, and seeking, and the Spirit will continue interceding. And God will continue faithful.
God knows our hearts. And he loves us. How could our Roads not be Full of Promise?
So I will continue on my Road in prayer, in seeking, in hope, finding those Promises.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
Great post, as always! It made me think of this description of praying with hope by Henri Nouwen: "The immense difference that exists between hope and wishfulness is revealed in the remarks of a student who wrote: 'I see hope as an attitude where everything stays open before me. Not that I don't think of my future in those moments, but I think of it in an entirely different way. Daring to stay open to whatever will come to me today, tomorrow, two months from now, or a year from now--that is hope. To go fearlessly into things without knowing how they'll turn out, to keep on going, even when something doesn't work the first time, is to have trust in whatever you're doing--that is living with hope.'..In the prayer of hope, there are no guarantees asked, no conditions posed, and no proofs demanded. You expect everything from the other without binding the other in any way. Hope is based on the premise that the other gives only what is good. Hope includes an openness by which you wait for the promise to come through, even though you never know when, where, or how this might happen."
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