Have you ever found yourself saying, “I can’t wait for this day to be over”?
I have on many occasions, but I think it is a dangerous habit to fall into for a few reasons:
- There may not be a next day. The Psalms say: “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” I find it helpful to reflect regularly on the following questions: if this were my last day on earth, would I change anything about how I spend it? Would I change my attitudes?
- There is always wonder if you look around you. Much of our suffering comes from fixating too much within. Today I saw a pair of woodpeckers chasing each other. One of them had a red crown. I was imagining what the world looked like as they skipped around a tree trunk.
- You can change your expectations. Another source of suffering is overinflated expectations. I blame modern media and survivorship bias for this. Everyone wants to focus on the “success stories”, but you don’t hear about the failures and the struggles. Even the most successful of people (e.g. Michael Phelps and Michael Jackson) were haunted by demons. It is a blessing to be okay with who you are in the moment.
Finally, the Westminster Catechism brings a helpful perspective.
Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever.
If we are called to “enjoy God forever”, then it implies that we can do that now, or at any time. Now, it’s not always clear to me practically what that means in every circumstance, but I think prayer and meditation are good places to start.
