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Does anyone else feel sort of powerful when you press the “fast forward” button?
It’s the concept of being able to move ahead. Skip the commercials. Get back to the story we want to see.
Forget the conflict, the danger, the bad or scary stuff. Cut straight to the part with the upbeat pop song, the sun coming out, and the gray bursting into color. The first kiss, the homecoming, the applause, the victory.
What are we missing?
When we skip the middle, the magic is lost. We don’t feel the full rejoicing that comes with the victory. The growth of the character is minimized. Sometimes the ending doesn’t make sense in the context of what we know, because we missed something important.
I put a little too much value on “fast forward” in real life, too. No one likes the bad part. Who says, “I’m going through a challenging time and loving every minute of it“??
No, we’d rather skip ahead, thanks.
To the new job.
A grand adventure.
Vacation.
Marriage.
Parenthood.
Dating.
Resolution.
Answers.
Relief.
No one wants to suffer or struggle or wait.
Yet most of our lives seem to be about the in-between stage.
And much as I want to control the outcome and the pace of life, I can’t. It usually ends badly for me when I try to just fast forward it all.
Case in point, when we first got married, I thought I could skip the fights. Instead of working it out, I’d wait, sulking and silent, until I felt somewhat better. Then “I’m sorry,” and I’m out.
No conflict means no hurt feelings and none of the difficult work of figuring out the why and the how to make it better. No conflict rocks. Better to apologize and move on fast.
This, of course, leaves my husband (and really any sane person in a loving relationship) in a lurch. In time I learned that “I’m sorry” is only part of the solution, and it gets lost without listening and making it better. Really being able to express how I felt, and – gulp! – hear how HE felt; to more than apologize, but own up to mistakes made – these are the things that keep a relationship real and strong.
Similarly, with difficult seasons of life, I am most likely to want to skip ahead to “okay,” “normal,” “fine”. Steer clear of transition, depression, anxiety, conflict, hurt. I’ll take what I consider to be the happy ending, thank you very much.
But in the brutal, heartbreaking, impossible moments, God is even closer to us.
When the walls are closing in and the clouds are covering the sun, God picks us up and holds us close. He has a better ending in store, and is fine-tuning us in the meantime. He works wonders in the hurting, and paves the way for greater things than we can imagine.
One of my favorite psalms talks about this. Psalm 34 says, “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all; he protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken.” (Verses 17-20 NIV)
I also love the lyrics of Lauren Daigle‘s “Look Up Child”, especially where it says, of God, “You’re not threatened by the war, you’re not shaken by the storm, I know you’re in control.” When we feel like everything is thrown in the air, and ourselves with it, God is unmoved. He is steady and faithful and has a plan he will see through for our good. (Philippians 1:6, Romans 8:28, Jeremiah 29:11)
Life guarantees difficult things. God guarantees hope and a future.
In the face of challenges, I am learning and praying that you and I can be unflappable, because of God. I don’t want to fast forward to “the good part”. I want to be changed and strengthened in the storm and better able to brave the next one and enjoy the victory.
By the way, I’m reading It’s Not Supposed to Be This Way by Lysa Terkeurst lately, and it speaks to just this – facing disappointments in life with courage and faith. It’s been great, and I so recommend it.
So how about you?
How do you weather the in-between? How do you stay in the moment, when all you want to do is hit “fast forward”?
Bible verses from BibleGateway.com: Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Photo via Burst.shopify.com.
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