Let me start out to say that my wife is in love with Michael J. Fox. It’s not really altogether her fault. She was born in 1974, which made her 11 years old in the year 1985. This is also the same year that Michael J Fox won an Emmy for his portrayal of Alex P Keaton on Family Ties and the year he starred in what she believes is the greatest 80’s movie ever – Back to the Future. It’s the classic pre-teen girl hormone crush that never went away, but I’m ok with it. I’m not jealous in the least bit. Just as long as Michael doesn’t mess with me, I won’t mess with him. If any of you know how to get that little message on to him, I’d be really grateful.
Seriously, I think Back to the Future is a great movie, particularly when I compare it with the popular teen movies of today. But I think the movie has a few flaws. First, How does one go about ripping off a group of angry militia men without them knowing anything about it? And if you get stuck in 1955, wouldn’t you think about dropping a few stock tips to your future folks? I mean a few selected stocks bought in 1955 would make you quite a bit of money over 30 years. But I think the biggest flaw is how Back to the Future taught us that all of our actions are connected. Just make one small change in history and BOOM – everything is different. It makes us feel that everything that we do and have done is part of some grand cosmic story that has already been written. It is as thought we could get to heaven and go to God’s library and we would find a big book titled, “History of the World” and there it would be – laid out before us in black and white.
Some would say this is the same story in the bible. God has laid out a history that will come to pass that we have no effect upon. After all, look at the nation of Israel – formed by God’s will, saved by God’s hand, built up, torn down, and restored. Some look at the story of Israel and see a God that plays with history much like we might play with a set of Legos. He sets up the world He wants, plays around with it as He wants, and ultimately tears it down and starts over again. Some would relegate this to be our story – a people just waiting around for God to do with us what He wants. It is almost to say that our life is without purpose or design and that God merely chooses our path and we follow blindly.
Friends, I do believe that God has a plan for us. I believe that God is in control of the world and that He ultimately will reign. God tells us in the verses read earlier, “I know the plans that I have for you. Plans for welfare and not for calamity, to give you a future and a hope.” God has a will for our lives, but I have come to understand that will in a much more dynamic way. God is big enough to allow our will to live along side his will. He may have plans for us, but God’s will is not always about giving us specifics. There is a great deal of leeway that God grants us in serving His will. It is a lot like when my daughter plays in the back yard. It is in my will that she go outside and play, particularly when she has had a bit too much sugar. But I don’t have a specific will about what she does outside. Should she color with chalk? Should she slide down the slide? Would I like her to blow bubbles and chase them around the yard? It really isn’t a big concern for me. It pleases me more when she decides what to do on her own among the many things that I think are safe and fun for her. God in the same way gives us freedom within His will to live our lives.
God’s will is also an eternal will. This means that from the perspective of eternity God’s desires are always fulfilled. Does this mean that each and every act specifically fulfills God’s will? No. It means that despite a world that goes against His will, God will ultimately win.
One of the hardest sayings that we Christians perpetuate on each other is that pain is “God’s will.” It is said with the sincerest desire to be helpful and uplifting, but really doesn’t express the truth about God. You’ve all heard it and I admit that at times I have been guilty of saying it when I felt like I needed to say something. Someone experiences a great tragedy in their lives and someone comes along, puts their arm around them and says lovingly, “You know, it was just God’s will.” We mean well when we say it, but it just isn’t true. God’s ultimate will is that we are united with Him in Christ and living the life we were designed to live. When things happen that go against this will, either through our actions or the actions of others, this is not God’s will, it is our will. God’s will is that we know that he has a future hope and a peace. God’s will is that we become His children, and while he certainly will bring us blessing in this temporal world we live, His eternal eye knows where our true hope lies. To live in God’s will is to trust that His eternal grace reigns and that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ.
Finally, God’s will is not something that He has hidden from us. His promise to us in Jeremiah is an eternal promise, “You will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart.” God wants us to find him. And when we find Him, we find His will. On occasion my daughter Kayla will indulge me in one of my favorite childhood games, Hide and Seek. It is fun to play with her because she is so cute about hiding. She thinks that if she can’t see you, you can’t see her. It makes hiding really easy for her because all she has to do is cover her eyes and she disappears from sight. There is little much sweeter than her giggle as I stand right in front of her saying, “I just can’t find her, I wonder where she is?” And when it’s my turn to hide I don’t disappear into a dark place where she would never look. In fact I usually “hide” in another room and after a few minutes I call out to her to come and find me. And she runs in with her sweet little smile and golden curls and jumps on me and shouts, “I found you.” This is what I think God does for us. When we are seeking Him with our hearts and souls – with all that we truly are, and when our desire is for Him, we will find Him. And when we find Him we find His will – the comfort of knowing that he has an eternal future of hope and peace.
So I think Back to the Future has it all wrong. We are not just mere robots bound to a cosmic story that God has already laid out. No, God is big enough to let us live in our will and still fulfill his eternal will. God gives us latitude to serve Him and promises that His eternal truth will be our future. He says we will find Him if we seek Him. Today I encourage you to seek God with all your heart and learn the hope of an eternal future in Christ Jesus. Amen.