There’s a space between where we are and where we hope to someday be. This someday, this next serves as a mental destination. If I arrive [insert destination here], then I will be completely and fully satisfied. If only I can just reach out and grasp what I am searching for, then I will be content. But our next is not a destination, it is simply a season. In the same way, our now is a season. A season God has placed under our charge. Yet, here we are, chasing after this next. What are we going to do with our now?

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.” Ecclesiastes 3:1 NIV

Consider this: what is your now? I’m going to presume you aren’t where you expected to be. Your expectations for this season just don’t align with your reality. And that’s okay. Mine certainly didn’t. I am still at a point in life I once considered a stepping stone to the next. But there is such a beauty in leaning into the now, to fully embrace what God has in store in this current season. But how do we go about doing this when find ourselves so disheartened?

Prayer

Start with prayer. I know, this seems simple, but inviting God’s presence into this moment changes our hearts, aligns our spirit with His, and floods us with contentment for the now.

“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.” Colossians 4:2 NIV

Stewardship

Even if my now is not where I hoped to be, still I will walk and steward each step in faithfulness. The now, this present moment, is a precious gift. This season is preparing you for the next one. But God is asking you to steward it well. When He sees we are faithful in the small, perhaps inconsequential moments, then He allows us to take on a greater charge. We see evidence of this in scripture. Imagine the Lord looking on you with love, speaking these words to you.

“Well done good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things.” Matthew 25:21 NIV

Expectancy

To be expectant means to be alert and watchful. We cannot be found asleep with what God has placed on our charge. In the garden of Gethsemane, the disciples were given one task- to keep watch. But Jesus found them sleeping on the job. Don’t allow your complacency to blind you from what God wants to do in the here and now. Expect God to move. Keep watch. Be on guard. Be alert. Search for every opportunity to be used as a vessel, just like Esther.

“For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to a royal position for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14 NIV

Perhaps it’s you. Perhaps it’s now. Devote this season to the Lord’s prompting. Steward this moment well. Expect Him to move and be willing to arise when He does. What do I do with my now?

Live abundantly!

- Kierstin Almstrum, Arise Project Manager