Rehearsing Goodness

God, it’s gorgeous. I see the flowering pink and white trees outside my second-story window, the glint of sun in the billowy clouds juxtaposed to the darkness of an impending spring shower. Just a few weeks before we leave this house in the woods outside Kiev, I look at my surroundings with fresh appreciation.

Change. Again. But the move is only across town to a high-ceilinged beautiful flat in my favorite old part of the city. The benefits of close proximity to people and places make it a good move. The fact is, change never lets up. It is a relentless march from childhood to old age or an inviting journey of wonder and new opportunities, beckoning us to grow and stretch in response. Take your pick. The challenge, from my standpoint, is smiling at the future.

Old painful scenarios can play out in our minds as a script from the past that we want to tear up and throw away. We want a new script where the heart does not hide and the repeating cycle of longing, fulfillment and letting go always leads to new possibilities in light of the deep, abiding constant of the unfailing love and faithfulness of God.

Yes, in light of this, smiling at the future is not empty-headed optimism. Swine flu and economic crisis, people coming and going, the landscape always changes. I was saved from sappy sentimentality just now because I don’t see a rainbow filling the sky with color as the rain begins to fall. When I was a small child, blonde curls bouncing, my father instilled in me the confidence I needed for life. I lived in trust and security, which seemed to stretch on forever. Years were eons compared to what they are now. Now they pass by rapid-fire.

And my heavenly Father says, “Trust, trust me. It is going to be good because I am with you, leading you, and I am good." Yes, mightily good.

“Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.” (Psalm 23:6)

“Strength and dignity are her clothing, And she smiles at the future.” (Proverbs 31:25)