Horse and Buggy Days
During my devotion this week, I found myself reminiscing about the ‘good ol’ days’. One of the verses I’d read had put me in that frame of mind and I rested there a while before reality called me back.
The verse was from Habakkuk 3:2, which reads “Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, Lord. Repeat them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.” (NIV)
I had been reading a news article before I read my Bible that day, and it’s easy to see why that verse jumped out at me and sent me into the land of Nostalgia.
Things are bad and so much is not working out. Time is moving but not much else is. Problems are mounting and solutions are few. So yes, I remember the days when prayers were answered; when miracles were popping all around me; when it was one praise-fest after another. And I find myself pining for a repeat.
But, were the good ol’ days really good? Am I stuck in a mirage, an illusion that never was? That’s a hard question and I might never be objective enough to give a true answer. My memory only held on to the great times and probably obliterated the hardships of those seasons I now remember with such nostalgia. Because let’s be real – there has never been a time in history when there were no difficulties in life.
And even now that things are ‘bad’, there is no absence of good things happening that I can be grateful for. Most of those are priceless and the story would be very different if things were not as they are, but I take most of those blessings for granted most days and don’t appreciate how blessed I am to have them. That is until I see someone who does not have half of what I have and realize that they are still soldiering on, even in the face of their difficulties. That usually serves to get me back to reality fast.
Ecclesiastes 7:10 admonishes “Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?” For it is not wise to ask such questions.” (NIV)
The thought is not expounded in that verse but I can chance to think why it is not wise. One, I am not omniscient. I only know what my brain can recall, and that is not much in the grand scheme of things. Two, I am not omnipresent. I can only be where I am at this moment and only know what is taking place here. Three, I am not omnipotent and hence I am not in control. Ever tried to teach a cat to perform tricks?
Some things happen to us to grow our muscles. Some experiences prepare us for our purpose in a future season, and others serve to make us an example for people to emulate. On this side of heaven, asking the why question rarely brings answers and I have found that I am better off asking ‘So, what now?’ – as I seek to find a way forward in light of the prevailing circumstances.
My exhortation for you today – the old is gone. Make the best of what you have at present because you may just be preparing for an even better future.
“I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good old days before you’ve actually left them.” ~ Andy Bernard
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