Wednesday, November 4, 1998
Wednesday, November 4, 1998
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram, and
said to him, "I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless. (Genesis 17:1
NRSV)
I read somewhere that the Masai people in Africa have no word for future. They have no
vocabulary for talking about things that might happen tomorrow. We, on the other hand, are
obsessed with the future. It has often been noted that the Eskimo people have 52 different words
for snow. We have twice that many words in our vocabulary that refer to the future. There is even
an entire profession--called futurists--who look into their crystal balls and make predictions about
what life will be like for us in the years ahead based on advances that are taking place right now.
And why shouldn't we want to know about the future? The future hold so much promise for us as
God's people.
For example, there is a biotechnology company in Florida that is growing the inside of an
orange--no peel, no pulp, no seeds, no tree--just the cells that produce the juice. To think, if this
catches on, oranges will be grown in laboratories. A multilevel building will take the place of
several thousand acres of citrus groves. Plus, there would be no worry about early frosts, blight,
pesticides and herbicides, or droughts.
Yes, the future holds so much promise. But our future holds the most promise when we walk with
God everyday of our lives!
Prayer: Dear God, the future holds so much promise, especially when I'm walking with
you. Amen.
Ronald Newhouse, Texas, USA