And the One sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making all things new!” (Rev. 21:5a)
Depending on who you are, don’t get your hopes up or get worried that Northwoods Musings is going “chick flick.” It is not. Today’s title does not come from the notion that a romantic is one whose veins flow with Valentine sweets or has a lifetime subscription with Harlequin publishers. Rather, it comes from the true definition of romanticism, which is a longing for things to be the way they ought to be and not the way they are.
I am still in the early phases of a home remodeling project, where the intention is to change the way my home and surrounding woods look. After thirty years, neither house nor woods look anything like they did when this place was new. I have been carefully studying the inside and outside of my home looking for clues in order to get a better idea of what it was like originally. My mind wanders as I imagine the first owners of this house entertaining in the yard, kids running through lawns that are now densely forested woods, and animals grazing in pastures which are now thickets choked with scrubby brush and thorny bushes. I can picture the cows that once drank at a spring on the property - a spring now blocked with thirty years of leaves and other natural debris.
As pleasant as all of the imagining can be for me, it is still only an exercise in looking backward, not forward. And as much as I love my home today, there is something that gnaws at me for this house and property to become much more than it is right now or was thirty years ago. Within me is a crazy tension between being content and the feeling that there is something much better on its way. What’s more, this tension is no longer limited to my house remodeling; it has been manifested in pretty much every area of my life.
Let me explain. Today I am content with God’s blessings, yet my soul longs for something that I can’t quite describe. I’m beginning to understand that what I long for is what God is preparing and has yet to reveal. The world would define someone like me as a hopeless romantic. I know many of you have heard or used that term at one time or another. But I actually would define myself as a hopeful romantic. A hopeless romantic lives with only the longing. A hopeful romantic lives with the promise - and not just any promise. It is a promise made by God himself, the promise that all things will be new.
This tension that I feel between being content and longing for something to be new is not a defect; it is a supernatural by-product of God conforming me into the image of Christ. Deep within the heart of our Lord Jesus is the very same desire for all things to be new – to be the way they ought to be. If that were not true, He would not have followed His promise (above) with these words:
“Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” And He also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and Omega – the Beginning and the End.” (Rev. 21:5b-6a, emphasis mine)
It is His Spirit living within me that places, stirs, and excites the desire for the more, better, and new life; and it is His trustworthiness that enables me to wait. I can consider His promises a done deal – all things will be made new! I am also reminded that Jesus is preparing a place for me, and He’s coming back so that I will be with Him. Knowing this, I can enjoy what I have today, yet long to be with Him in that place. When that comes to pass, it will finally be the way it ought to be.
The Apostle Paul found a way through Christ to be content in all things, and the Apostle John prayed, “Amen! Come Lord Jesus!” So just like they were, I am a hopeful romantic at heart. I hope you are too.
Grace to you.
Dave Paukner
